The taphon is a traditional drum of Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

. It is barrel-shaped

Barrel drum

Barrel drums are a class of membranophone, or drum, characterized by a barrel-shape with a bulge in the middle. They are often one-headed and open at the bottom...

 with two heads, and is played by the hands and fingers of both hands, much like the more popular congas.

Originally called the Sa Phon, the taphon is used in the classical Thai wind-and-percussion ensemble called piphat

Piphat

A piphat is a kind of ensemble in the classical music of Thailand, which features wind and percussion instruments. It is considered the primary form of ensemble for the interpretation of the most sacred and "high-class" compositions of the Thai classical repertoire, including the Buddhist...

. Moreover, it is the most commonly used drum in Thai folk music, and is performed often in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Often used to accompany performances in Thai shrines which are meant to entertain the resident god in offering, it is considered a particularly sacred instrument in the Thai culture, and is generally kept in a higher place than other instruments. In many cases, designs are woven into the middle section of the taphon.

The taphon is very similar to the Cambodian sampho

Sampho

The samphor is a small barrel drum indigenous to Cambodia. It has two heads and is played with both hands. The player of the sampho leads the pinpeat , setting the tempo and beat...

.

An example of the taphon being played: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLSrnqc2zhU (skip to 0:36).