Depictions - more ancient images of Gaelic harp players.

Hill House pediment carving

Hill House, near Dunfermline, is a 17th century house. Above the drawing room windows are two naive carved scenes, one of which shows a person wearing an enormous ruff sitting on a little stool with a large low-headed harp. It is hard to draw much technical info from the carving because of its stylised nature; the projecting foot might lead us to think it is showing a Gaelic harp, but the slender neck and right orientation might favour a Continental style of instrument. It has a scroll at its top like some of the extant 18th century instruments.

A photograph and a description of this carving were published by Keith Sanger and Alison Kinnaird, Tree of Strings - Crann nan Teud, Kinmor 1992, p. 97.

Below: 1930s photo used under license from canmore.org.uk.

Depictions - more ancient images of Gaelic harp players.