Rope-tension is the oldest system for applying tension to drum heads and was common until the late 19th Century.
A long rope (or less commonly, a series of ropes) is passed alternately between the top and bottom drum head hoops that are held to the shell by clamps which incorporate holes for the rope(s). The ropes are tightened by sewn-together loops, usually of leather, which are slid downward to tighten the drum heads and which remain in position by surface tension against the rope.
The drum heads thus tightened are not as tense as with the more modern single-tension or double-tension systems, but offer a historically deep tone in keeping with the heritage of certain music, such as pipe-and-drum corps, fife-and-drum corps, or bands of the Civil War era.