Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Sistrum \Sis"trum\, [L., fr. Gr. ???, from ??? to shake.] (Mus.)
   An instrument consisting of a thin metal frame, through which
   passed a number of metal rods, and furnished with a handle by
   which it was shaken and made to rattle. It was peculiarly
   Egyptian, and used especially in the worship of Isis. It is
   still used in Nubia.