The oldest evidence of the existence of the guitar dates back to 1900-1800 B.C. It was found in Babylonia on clay plaques, which portray nude figures playing instruments that bear a general resemblance to the guitar.

There are many cultures that take claim to inventing the guitar, but many accounts report the Egyptians had a fine example of the guitar with ribs and incurvations and a long neck identified on a monument in Cappadocia, Syria in 1000 B.C. There still seems to be great disagreement in those who claim the guitar originated in Europe or those who state it came from the Arabs.

The guitar originally had two courses of strings, two double, the top course single, that ran from a violin-like peg box to a tension bridge glued to the soundboard, or belly; the bridge thus sustained the direct pull of the strings. In the belly was a circular sound hole, often ornament

Beginning with the 16th century we find much more direct evidence in the form of instruments that exist today. They are described as vihuela from the time of Luis Milan, rizzio guitar from France, and the chitarra battente from Italy. Originally the vihuela was associated to a small four and five string guitarra. Music became more rhythmic and more frets were added to the neck of the guitar, this enabled composers to play more complex and classical music.

Sor played the guitar as a solo instrument at the London Philharmonic Concert in 1817. Paganinni was also active, playing and writing for the guitar as well as the violin. Stradivarius made guitars as well as violins.

The first of the guitars was represented in Western Europe in 1180 A.D. but only had three strings. It can be viewed in a picture found of St. Pelagia seated on a donkey holding a cithara, while of the men servants leading her donkey holds her guitar. Another masterpiece was found in 1188 A.D in Spanish church. There are several musical instruments pictured which seems to represent the original Spanish viol or guitar. The sides were curved but were not played with a bow.

By the eighteenth century, Germany had become increasingly active in this particular music field. It too accumulated an impressive number of guitarists and composers especially as baroque music reached its peak. Meanwhile in France, the guitar had attained the status of an instrument par excellence by the nobility. Soon after, the French revolution caused many nobles to be exiled and surprisingly the guitar actually became more popular as the general public adopted the instrument.

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