The modern classical sarod is around 100 cm (39 inches) long, with a slightly waisted wood body and a skin belly. The large fretless fingerboard on the broad neck is coated in metal to permit unique sliding pitches. It has a flat soundpost and a curved back that fits against your shoulder blade when you play. The ancient Indian sarode was quite different. It was about two feet long (60 centimeters), with a bowl-shaped wooden body carved from a single piece of wood. The neck was made of maple and the pegbox was filled with ivory balls for the tuning pins. There were no frets, only smooth rounded surfaces called "nails" where the strings were tied to hold them in place. The bow used to play the instrument was shaped like an arrow and had leather straps attached to it for carrying. The player would sit down while playing, just as today's violinists do. But instead of using pegs to tune his instrument, the sarod was tuned by moving the bones inside his arm to adjust the tension of the strings. This musical instrument was played at royal ceremonies and also used in religious rituals. It has been estimated that during the Mughal era (1526-1858) there were around 200 musicians playing the sarod in India. Today this number has decreased since the instrument is no longer popular among young people.