Arch harp-lute.

Barry

Photo by Dominic Ibbotson © The University of Edinburgh

Instrument

Arch harp lute

Instrument Family

Strings

Maker

Barry

Place Made

London; United Kingdom; England; Europe

Date Made

Early 19th Century

Description

Technical description: Bookmatched soundboard of spruce. Soundhole 80mm diameter. Painted decoration around soundhole giving the impression of purfling, of a gold floral pattern on a black background, with gold bands either side. Same decoration around the edge of the instrument. Gold floral work between the bridge and bottom, and between the soundhole and fingerboard, and black floral work at the end of the bridge. Floating bridge on soundboard, cannot properly work. Bridge of black stained maple. Floating bridge of maple(?) with brass saddle. The strings pass through holes in the bridge. Back and sides of maple, the back of one piece of lightly-figured wood. Gold floral work decoration on the sides at the soundboard and back edges, and around the edge on the back. Ivory endpin. Black stained maple(?) neck and head. Theorbo head arrangement, all the fretted strings (7) go over the first nut and into pegs of fruitwood. Other strings (doubled) go over second nut. Top head terminated with square finial. Fretted nut of ivory. Fingerboard of ebony with 12 ivory frets. Width at nut 63.7mm, at body join 76.8mm. Body joins neck at fret 10. Frets 1.2mm wide. String setup: 10 courses: (7 × 1) + (3 × 2) strings, 13 strings in total. Overall size: 1140mm Body length: 438mm Body width, widest: 347mm Body depth: 98.5mm (bottom - 69mm (heel) String length: 496mm (fretted), circa 770mm (diapason) Signature marks: Makers details "BARRY MAKER" painted in banner on the soundboard. Reid Bequest sticker on the back near the heel. Repair History: Floating bridge on soundboard probably a replacement made because the bridge was incorrectly placed.

Notes

A. Macaulay, November 1991; D.P. Martin, 2003.

Measurements

1140.

Collection

Reid Collection; MIMEd

Accession Number

0306