Its resonance box is usually trapezoidal, rectangular or in the form of a "pig's head" and often richly decorated.

"[4] The psaltery was originally made from wood, and relied on natural acoustics for sound production.

The psaltery has been compared to the harpsichord[6] and dulcimer, though some forms of the latter are not plucked, but struck with hammers.

[1] The psalterion decacordum was shaped like a square and had ten strings strung vertically.

The hammered dulcimer and related instruments, such as the santur, cimbalom, yangqin, and khim, appear very similar to psalteries, and it is often hard to tell which one historical images represent.