I thought it was just a sort of early piano!
Some early pianos had shapes and designs that are no longer in use.
Sametz's earliest piano works date from the age of six.
The early pianos had strings that were fastened to a frame made of wood.
His earliest public piano recital was in 1889 at age fourteen.
The earliest pianos to be known today are made.
This stance comes through stunningly in his early piano sonatas, especially the first 8 of the monumental 32.
A page about the early piano, including an image of the 1722 Cristofori instrument in Rome.
The use of "fortepiano" to refer specifically to early pianos appears to be recent.
The early pianos can handle it too, but only barely.