Celtic Harps

Celtic Harps of Old

The Trinity College Harp Library at Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland, 15th Century Pyrography, carving, and colour on a harp Image courtesy of the Alison Vardy web site

Pyroengraving on the Celtic Harps There is hardly a pyrographic artist who hasn't tried his or her hand at a Celtic design--one look at those intriguing designs and you know you want to pyroengrave one on something. It's as though they were designed with pyrography in mind.

These designs can be found on the early harps shown above and below. Sadly, these harps' richly colored and beautifully pyroengraved Celtic designs have faded drastically, the colours almost completely.

There is documentation to show that Irish harps date back as far as the 10th Century; however, as yet--although it seems highly probable--I cannot affirm they had pyroengraved ornamentation back that far. The earliest surviving harps from Scotland and Ireland date to about the 15th century, like the famous Trinity College harp above and likewise, the Queen Mary Harp of Edinburgh, Scotland, shown following.

One of Ireland's national treasures, the Trinity is Ireland's national symbol and is on display in the library at Trinity College in Dublin, in the same room as the famous Book of Kells.

Highlights of The Long History of the Celtic Harp Although folk legend credits the Irish with bringing the harp to Europe, scholarly accounts exist theorizing that that claim may not be totally accurate. Regardless, for more than a thousand years the harp and Celtic harp music have been tied to Irish culture and nationalism.

For centuries, the harp was an integral part of Irish life. Traveling harpists in Ireland were known to be at the focal point of rebellions--so much so that the harp was banned. Under the English, starting in the 1700s, the Irish harp as a folk and court instrument was suppressed to prevent a resurgence of nationalism. Harps were burnt and harpers executed.

Famous in Irish history is Turlough Carolan (1670-1738), a blind Irish folk harpist who wrote hundreds of tunes, many of which are still popular today. Because of Ireland's turbulent history, however, the rich tradition of Irish folk harp playing and music was often broken, and much has regrettably been lost.

King Griffith of Wales employed harpists in his court at the end of the 11th Century, and it was only with the Welsh that the folk harp tradition has remained unbroken.

With thanks for the above images and historic excerpts to Alison Vardy, an internationally renowned harpist, who has traveled to many countries of the world to learn their traditional harp music. Read more about the harp's history and Alison Vardy's harp music at the enchanting Alison Vardy web site, where you will no doubt want to spend some time, as I did.

The Witcher Trinity Harp The harp itself plus its carving, silver and jewel ornamentation by Jay Witcher, 2000 Pyroengraving and colour by Charlotte Hallett, 2000 Pyroengraving and colour on carved maple wood harp with silver and jewel incrusted ornamentation A reproduction of the decorated Trinity harp, also known as the Brian Boru harp The original is on display in the library at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland in the same room as the Book of Kells Image courtesy of The Harp and Dragon, Cortland, New York, U.S.A.

The Witcher Trinity Harp On a commission from The Harp and Dragon of Cortland, New York, U.S.A., expert harpmaker Jay Witcher of Houlton, Maine, U.S.A. made the magnificent reproduction above showing how the original Trinity Harp would have looked in all its glory so many centuries ago. Although not a standard concert harp of today, it is a playable wire string harp of museum exhibition quality. The harp is made out of maple, which according to Jay, "has excellent acoustical properties and strength." Besides making the basic harp himself, Jay did the carving, silver ornamentation, and jewel incrustation for the harp. The exquisite Celtic style pyroengraved and colour ornamentation was done by Charlotte Hallett of Haverhill, Massachusetts, U.S.A. Jay has made a wide variety of harps, including other historical copies of surviving Irish and Scottish harps. In addition to the Trinity, shown here, which he reproduced for The Harp and Dragon, he has reproduced the Sirr, O'Ffogerty, Lamont, Queen Mary, and others.

In case you would like to own the above Witcher Trinity harp, it is currently for sale at The Harp and Dragon for $10,000. Be sure and click on The Harp and Dragon link for another pleasurable harp experience.

Look for follow-up antique and reproduction harp exhibits soon in the E-Museum of Pyrographic Art.

Irish Coin

National Emblem

The Irish Harp as National Emblem The harp has been associated with Ireland since earliest times. It features prominently in Irish folklore and legend. Ancient lrish society held harpists in the highest esteem. The earliest example of the harp used as a symbol representing Ireland can be found in a late 13th century French manuscript, the 'Wijnbergen Armorial'. The earliest use of the harp as a national emblem on coinage was on Henry VIII's Anglo-lrish silver groats and half-groats coins issued from 1534. King James I incorporated the harp on a blue background in the 3rd quarter of the Royal Arms of Britain in 1603. It is still used in this form today. A green flag bearing the harp as a symbol of Ireland was flown by Owen Roe O'Neill as he led the Ulster armies during the 1641 Rebellion. This marked a significant step in the representation of Ireland with a harp emblem. The green flag with a gold harp became the national flag from at least the eighteenth century until the early 20th century. It was replaced by the tricolour following the 1916 Easter Rising. The Irish Free State began the official use of the tricolour in 1922 and in 1937 the Constitution of Ireland formally declared it the national flag.

While the tricolour found favour as the national flag, the harp was retained for use on the Presidential standard and official seals. The official harp emblem is derived from the Trinity College harp and has been used on all Irish coins since the original Percy Metcalfe designs issued in 1928.

The Trinity College 'Brian Boru' Harp The Trinity College harp was donated by The Rt. Hon. William Conyngham in 1760 but its exact origin is unknown. The harp is of a small/low-headed design, around 34 inches tall, made of willow with thirty strings, and is typical of those made in the 15th century. It is one of only three of this type to survive. Intricately decorated it is believed that the harp was created for someone of great importance. Although no historical evidence exists it is connected with and named after Brian Born, the High King of Ireland.

Guinness’s own the copyright to the opposite side of the Celtic Harp.

From the Guinness Storehouse: Archive Fact Sheet: The Harp Trademark

Published here by the kind permission of Guinness The harp, which serves as the Guinness emblem, is based on a famous 14th century Irish harp known as the "O'Neill" or "Brian Boru" harp which is now preserved in the Library of Trinity College Dublin. The harp device has been synonymous with Guinness since 1862 when it was used as a symbol on the first bottle label for GUINNESS®. It was registered as a Guinness company trademark in 1876. It is because of the harp trademark that Guinness named its first lager 'Harp' in 1960.

1862 harp

current harp

The harp is one of three elements that make up the GUINNESS® livery. The other two elements are the GUINNESS® word and Arthur Guinness's famous signature. There have been a number of changes to the design of the harp device over the years including a reduction in the number of strings shown. The current harp was introduced in 2005 when a new brand livery was launched.

The harp is also the official national emblem of the Republic of Ireland and can be found on the Republic's coinage. However, there is a difference between the Irish government harp and the Guinness harp. As Guinness had trademarked the harp symbol in 1876, the Irish Free State Government of 1922, had to turn the official government harp the other way to differentiate between the trademarked Guinness harp and the official State emblem. The distinguishing feature between the two harps is that the Guinness Harp always appears with its straight edge (the sound board) to the left, and the government harp is always shown with its straight edge to the right.