The Queen Mary Harp ( gd, Clàrsach na Banrìgh Màiri) or ''Lude Harp'', is a Scottish

clarsach The Celtic harp is a triangular frame harp traditional to the Celtic nations of northwest Europe. It is known as in Irish, in Scottish Gaelic, in Breton and in Welsh. In Ireland and Scotland, it was a wire-strung instrument requiring gr ...

currently displayed in the

National Museum of Scotland The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland, was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, and the adjacent Royal Scottish Museum (opened in ...

. It is believed to date back to the 15th century, and to have originated in

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

, in

South West Scotland South West Scotland is an ambiguous term that can include Ayrshire, Galloway, Dumfriesshire, the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, as well as Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire. However the inclusion or exclusion of these areas is to an extent arbitrary: the only ...

.Keith Sanger and Alison Kinnaird, ''Tree of Strings - Crann nan Teud'', Kinmor 1992 It is one of the three oldest surviving Gaelic harps, the others being the

Lamont Harp The Lamont Harp, or Clàrsach Lumanach (also known as the Caledonian Harp or Lude Harp) is a Scottish Clarsach currently displayed in the National Museum of Scotland. It is believed to date back to the 15th century, and to have originated in Argy ...

and the

Trinity College Harp The Trinity College harp, also known as "Brian Boru's harp", is a medieval musical instrument on display in the long room at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland. It is an early Irish harp or wire-strung cláirseach. It is dated to the 14th or 15th ...

History

The Queen Mary Harp dates from 1500 and was presented to the harper Beatrix Gardyn of

Banchory Banchory (, sco, Banchry, gd, Beannchar) is a burgh or town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is about west of Aberdeen, near where the Feugh River meets the River Dee. Prehistory and archaeology In 2009, a farmer discovered a short cist ...

in 1563 by

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

, while on a hunting trip. It is also said to have been adorned at one time with a gold portrait of Mary which is why the harp is associated with the queen of Scots and was subsequently passed down into the Robertson family of Lude, in

Perthshire Perthshire (locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, ...

. Lady Gardyn's son had a servant in 1588 called Anthony McEwan McChlairser ("son of the harper"), which provides a clue as to who might have played this clarsach. The last harpist to play the instrument is noted as John Robertson of Lude (died c. 1729); his repertory was preserved in the family and published by John Bowie in 1789. All three surviving Gaelic harps are considered to have been made in Argyll in South-West Scotland at some time in the 14th or 15th centuries.

Appearance

The Queen Mary harp is noted for being the most complete and best-preserved of all the old harps. It is covered in original and intricate carving. The forepillar or ''Lamhchrann'' is elaborately carved with a double-headed zoomorphic figure and the instrument retains traces of pigment. Some traces have been analyzed and identified as vermilion. The decoration includes a number of pieces of Christian symbolism suggesting that the harp may have been made as a commission for a church or monastery.Robert Bruce Armstrong “The Irish and Highland Harps”, David Douglas 1904 The vine-scrolls and the particular shape of the "split palmette" leaves have clear parallels with 15th century West

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

grave slabs from the Argyll area, suggesting that this is the time and place that the harp originated. A grave-slab in the chapel at Keills in

Knapdale Knapdale ( gd, Cnapadal, IPA: �kraʰpət̪əɫ̪ forms a rural district of Argyll and Bute in the Scottish Highlands, adjoining Kintyre to the south, and divided from the rest of Argyll to the north by the Crinan Canal. It includes two parishes, ...

has a carving of a harp similar in appearance to the Queen Mary.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Queen Mary Harp 15th century in music 15th century in Scotland History of Argyll and Bute Early musical instruments Scottish music Individual harps Collections of the National Museums of Scotland Scotland in the Late Middle Ages