Thursday, April 12, 2012

This place is like a treasure trove. 2,300 year old harp found!


This picture is from the Daily Mail. 

In ancient Scotland, without written records, the history was handed down from father to son by word of mouth. But the essentials were often recorded in song. Important people had praise songs as a public tribute in the ancient Gaelic culture.

Cave drawings show how important was music. Flutes have been identified as the oldest instrument of all. You can find flutes to-day because they are made from bone. But the harp is made from wood, and does not last. The harp is the oldest stringed instrument known to mankind. This fragment has lasted for 2,300 years.

The fragment of this harp was found near Armadale in Skye opposite the Mallaig ferry. It was made only 100 years after the oldest harp ever found, in Persia.

Pictish stones depict harps from the 8th century. This harp dated back no less than 1400 years before that.

This is a treasure land, Scotland, it really is.
John
Links:
The real story of the Glencoe Massacre
History around Appin
The Vikings stage a battle in Glencoe?
The Pictish broch. Lismore West of Scotland
Robert the Bruce and the Ardchattan parliament
Robert the Bruce and the Knights Templar
The MacDonalds of Glencoe
Ancient roads of the Highlands
Glencoe, the 4th Wonder of Scotland
Castles in the Glencoe area




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Lochside cottage near Glencoe in the Highlands of Scotland
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