The history of the 200-year-old crystal flute Lizzo played in DC

WASHINGTON - Thanks to a single tweet, Lizzo made history onstage at Capitol One Arena Tuesday night as she played former President James Madison’s 200-year-old flute.

The historic crystal flute is one of 1,700 in the Library of Congress’ collection. It's engraved with President Madison’s name and the year it was made — 1813.

Music division curator Carol Lynn Ward-Bamford told FOX 5 that the instrument was crafted for President James Madison. She walked the flute onstage at the concert and handed it to Lizzo who told fans that she "made history" by becoming the first person to play it. 

"The flute is part of a collection that came here in 1941," Ward-Bamford said. "It was a gift from a scientist in Cleveland, Ohio, and he was like the world's most popular scientist lecturing on many different things that he had discovered and wanted the public to hear about it."

According to the Library of Congress website, Madison's flute was made by a French craftsman named Claude Laurent. 

The crystal flute was gifted to President Madison sometime around his second inauguration. The priceless instrument was later rescued from the White House by First Lady Dolley Madison in April 1814 during the War of 1812. 

READ MORE: Lizzo visits Library of Congress to play flutes in DC

Over the weekend, the Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden invited Lizzo via Twitter to come see the artifact in person and play it. 

On Monday, the superstar songstress took Hayden up on her offer. She visited the flute vault, played a few notes on the crystal flute, and also serenaded employees and researchers with some other flutes.

"Hearing Lizzo play some of the Library's priceless antique instruments on Monday was such a gift, and we were honored and happy to help her share that gift with her concert audience Tuesday night," the Library of Congress tweeted.  

Check out some behind-the-scenes footage of her library tour below: