The Trinity College harp

The decoration on the Trinity College harp is very similar to that of the Queen Mary harp in both overall scheme and fineness of execution.

early 20th C
postcard

However, unlike the Queen Mary, the decoration on the Trinity harp has never been fully published; no closeup photographs are available, and the designs are now very difficult to see due to the heavy layer of varnish on the instrument. Also, there are many superimposed layers of decoration which can be very difficult to seperate out.

The main resource for understanding the decoration is Robert Bruce Armstrong's 1904 publication, The Irish and Highland Harps. I also have in my collection a photo postcard from the early 20th century which shows a lot of decorative detail now obscured.

Soundbox

The soundbox bears dark lines in geometric shapes - circles and diagonal lines. The scheme is comparable to the harp shown on the Keills cross slab. A detailed drawing and analysis of the soundbox decoration was published by R.B. Armstrong in 1904. (click the image to enlarge)

Armstrong reported that he was able, by looking at an angle, to see the original lines because they are impressed into the surface of the wood, while later restorations are just painted on.

His detailed drawing of what he thought were the original lines surviving shows how damaged the surface is - many areas bear no traces of the original decoration.

Most scholars (including myself) have repeatedly asserted that these soundbox lines are burned with a hot iron. However I am starting to doubt this assumption now. It is not clear how these lines were made.

The soundbox also bears the brass string shoes. These are delicate horseshoe shaped with tri-lobed ends nailed to the box. They may be lost-wax castings. Some early scholars state that they were gilded. (picture from my antique photo postcard)

The soundholes, especially the lower left, show traces of having previously had decorative mounts around them.

Neck

The neck bears a complex sequence of decoration arranged in panels on each side. Armstrong claimed to be able to see a simple burned geometric scheme underlying the carving on the left side of the neck. (click picture to enlarge). He also drew what he believed the right hand side may have originally looked like but he admits that he could not see any of this and was just guessing.

This scheme suggested by Armstrong is very similar to the design on the neck of the Queen Mary harp.

The circles of Armstrongs designs were later either carved into rosettes or covered with silver knobs. The panels between were filled with intaglio-carving of floral or geometric motifs, and the bass end panel on the left side has a design that has been interpreted as a gothic black-letter monogram IHC. (click to enlarge Armstrong’s photo)

The underside of the neck has beading carved along it, just like on the Queen Mary harp; Armstrong's soudboard plate (see above) includes a profile of this beading.

The end of the neck is covered in a silver cap, with delicately chased and cut sides, and with two large gem settings on. One of these is now empty and one has a quartz crystal. Armstrong's book includes a detailed drawing of this silver end cap.

The neck bears the cheek bands and tuning pins. Joan Rimmer in 1969 said that the pins and cheekbands were of silver, but their colour today is very golden or brassy. The cheek bands have delicate step-patterns engraved on, and the pins have engraved bands around as well as incised patterns on both the drive ends and the string ends. (illustration from my antique photo postcard)

Pillar

The pillar is covered in incredibly fine and detailed carved, incised, engraved, and coloured decoration. Unfortunately, Armstrong was not very interested in this work; he seems to have considered it a later addition, and does not illustrate much of it. I would think it is more likely to all be old if not original.

The pillar is carved as a rectangular-section, with a two-headed fish running up the outside of the curve. The fish (picture from my antique photo postcard) is divided into five fields. From the top, there is:
1. the upper head, with bulging eyes and lips. The lips have incised lining around them and the head is covered in orthogonal interlace strapwork. The square panels between the straps have foliate designs looking a little like shamrocks.
2. the shoulders of the fish have interlace panels, carved in low-relief so that the straps run over and under one another. The straps turn at the edges and possibly elsewhere on the panels, though I have been unable to make out the design fully.
3. The centre section is mostly plain, but has four circular designs that may be the remains of flowers or leaf motifs. The centre of this area has been carved away to make room for a gem setting.
4. the lower shoulders have similar low-relief interlace to the upper ones.
5. the lower head is similar to the upper head, but has its centre carved away for a gem setting.
The inside belly of the fish, facing the soundbox, has panels of geometric design matching the inside panel of the rectangular section. I would imagine this was originally all coloured red and blue. On the right hand side of the fish, there is a silver nail and plate embedded in the fish's belly, on the inside of the curve. This is the remains of a silver strap that would have wrapped round tot he front and secured the now lost gem setting in the centre of the fish.

The main rectangular section of the forepillar has decoration on the short front panels above and below the fish lips; the long side panels, and the inside panel facing the soundbox of the harp.

The flat side panels each have a pair of roundels, one above and one below the fish; each roundel has a pair of beasts. Two of the pairs of beasts are facing each other; two are looking away from each other. Armstrong published a line drawing of the beasts, though these line drawings are somewhat cruder than the very fine work on the originals. Only one of the eight animals can be discerned on Armstrong’s photos (see illustration to the right). Its head is very stylised, similar to heads from 8th and 9th century insular manuscripts such as the book of Kells.

The main areas of the side fields between the roundels is taken up with geometric foliage or interlace designs. The right side is visible on my old postcard; the left side is not really discernable in any published view. Edward Bunting published a view of the left side in 1840 but this is not accurate or complete.

The inside of the pillar curve has geometric designs with clear traces of red and blue paint in alternate fields; this design is illustrated by Armstrong on his soundbox plate.

Simon Chadwick