Where can I rent a lute?

• Lutes are fragile, expensive, and rare, and so there are not many out there for rent. Lute teachers sometimes have a few instruments to rent to their students. They find that the more instruments they have to rent the more students they have... I recommend taking lessons anyways, as the lute is not intuitive, and the touch is different from the guitar. Some of the lute societies have rental instruments.
• If you are looking for a lute for a theatrical production you will find that not many people will want to lend or rent out their prized instrument. Some makers have instruments which don't sound or play very well but still look good at a distance which they might sell or rent to a theatre. There are lutes made in Pakistan and guitars with lute-like bodies available for a reasonable price on eBay that may work well on stage.