The alligator drum (simplified Chinese: 鼍鼓; traditional Chinese: 鼉鼓; pinyin: tuó gǔ) is a type of drum once used in Neolithic China, made from clay and alligator hides.
Alligator drums have been found over a broad area at the Neolithic sites from modern Shandong in the east to Qinghai in the west, dating to a period of 5500–2350 BC.
In literary records, drums manifested shamanistic characteristics and were often used in ritual ceremonies.
[1] Drums covered with alligator skin for ceremonial use are mentioned in the Shijing.
[2][3][4] During the Archaic period, alligators probably lived along the east coast of China, including southern Shandong.