Bell harp (fairy bells)

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Instrument

Bell harp

Instrument Family

Strings

Place Made

United Kingdom ; Europe ; England

Date Made

(20th Century)

Description

Technical description: Box of pine with 20 × 12 piece of beech screwed to the base at the bottom to act as a wrestplank. Beech bridge and nut. Strings are longer at the outside of the instrument. Oak lid. Poplar(?) batten at the end of the lid with note names on it. Metal strings. Sounding length of string from the wrestpins, the strings do not go over any sort of raised bridge, but the wrestpins sit in the bridge itself. Square headed tuning-pins. Holes cut in the lid to allow the instrument to be tuned without removing the lid. Oblong box, with no attempt to imitate the shape of a bell. The strings go over a beech nut and attach at the bottom by screws which must be removed to detach the strings. Overall size: 644. Body length: 644. Body width: 168. Body depth: 56 (top), 48 (bottom), 60 (including `wrestplank'), 61 (at start of lid). String length: 572 - 455 (left hand); 376 - 260 (right hand). Note names on the batten on the left hand side "C D E F G"; on the right hand side "E D C B A". Decorative features: Oak lid is quarter sawn showing attractive rays, stained light mahogany colour and varnished.

Notes

D.P. Martin, 1996-1997.

Measurements

644.

Provenance

Purchased, 1987.

Collection

Mickleburgh Collection ; MIMEd

Accession Number

2764