Ireland

Miscellaneous finds

Image from the excavation of Lochpairc Crannog, near Tuam, published in Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, vol 32, (1914–1916)

Two wooden harp–pins were found, illustrated as drawings number 34 and 35 in plate XVII.

Wooden Artefacts From Cork, in Sean McGrail, ed. Woodworking Techniques Before AD 1500. (1982). pp 305-309.

Two wooden musical instrument pegs made of Yew, (illustrated numbers 6 and 7), one approximately 64mm and the other approximately 74mm long assuming drawings and scale are accurate. The author suggests that these pegs probably belonged to a lute or fiddle, although notes that the harp and tiompan were the only instruments likely to have used pegs in pre Norman Ireland. He goes on to suggest that Irish harp pegs tended to be long, quoting as an example a bone peg from a thirteenth century context in the same excavation as the two wooden pegs which was 9.5 cm long.

‘On the Discovery of Ogham Monuments and Other Antiquities in the Raths of Dunbel, Co. Kilkenny’. Proceedings and Transactions of the Kilkenny and South East of Ireland Archaeological Society, Vol 3. No 2, (1855), p 400.

3. A bone harp–pin (?), 3 inches long, skilfully turned in a lathe, with a handsome ornamented head.

‘On a Bronze Object Bearing a Runic Inscription Found at Greenmount, Castle Bellingham, Co Louth’,

“The only other object found, besides a considerable quantity of bones and teeth of animals, was a bone or ivory harp peg, (fig 4), resembling one engraved by Sir W. Wilde (Cat, p 340), from the Stokestown Crannog. I am indebted to Mr Franks for pointing out to me the real nature of this interesting relic, which still bears the marks of the friction of the harp string.”

The Journal of the Royal Historical and Archaeological Association of Ireland, Fourth Series, Vol 1. No 2, (1871), pp 480-481.

Excavation of a Coastal Midden at Carrickfin, Donegal. Finds included a harp peg of bone or horn, a thirteenth or fourteenth century date is suggested. (No further details available yet).

Excavations. ie, Database of Irish Excavation Reports, B780225, 1985:19

‘Account of the excavation of Two Lake Dwellings in the Neighbourhood of Clones’, Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. Vol 10, (1900), pp 204–226.

‘Fig. 9, represents a harp–pin of bone. One other was found, which is slightly shorter and thicker and has a larger perforation’.
(Unfortunately the illustration is drawn without any size guide).

Link to image of Figure 9 from Clones’ Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland

Link to image of page 226 from Clones’ Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland

Monaghan County Museum Archaeological Acquisitions 1974-75, Clogher Record. Vol 10. No 1, (1979), pp 110–136

‘Finds from Killyvilla Crannog, Kilcorran TD. Killyvilla Lake, Co Monaghan’

‘Harp peg. 75:315. Bone. Tapering stick; round section. Unperforated. Broad end carved to give finger grip. 8 cm L. x 0.9 cm D at broad end. 0.6 cm D at narrow end. See JRSAI, 27 (1897) 215, Fig 6.’

Monaghan County Museum Archaeological Acquisitions 1974-75, Clogher Record, Vol 10 No 1, (1979), pp 110–136

‘Finds from Crannog 1, Pottiagh TD. Drumacritten Lake, Co Fermanagh’

Harp peg. 75:265. Bone. Straight; round sectioned. Tapering from 0.8 cm at broader end to 0.65 cm at narrow end where transversly perforated. Top of broad end carved flat to provide finger grip. 4.8 cm L.

Harp peg. 75:266: Bone. Straight; round sectioned. Tapers from 0.9 cm D at broader end to 0.6 cm where perforated transversly. Top of broad end carved flat to provide finger grip. 6 cm L.

Harp peg. 75:267. Fragment. Bone. Straight. Both ends broken off. Round sectioned, 0.8 cm D at broad end, 0.65 cm at narrow end where break is at transverse perforation. 4.7 cm L.

Copper Alloy Pins

‘On the crannogs of Drumdarragh and Lankill’, Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Vol 7, (1885–86). pp 381 and plate 1 facing page 387.

Fig. 18 represents the pin of a Celtic harp. It was found at Drumdarragh and is composed of very fine bronze. Similar pins have been discovered in other crannogs, as also large portions of the metal–work of harps. Harp pins composed of bone are also at times found; they were probably used contemporaneously with those of bronze.

(Illustration is drawn but without any size guide).

Clare Museum, Archaeological Finds from the Barony of Corcomroe. Townland; Doonagore, (Castle), Killiagh Parish

Harp peg, Bronze

Found immediatly outside wall C, on old ground level. In very good condition, it measures 10.6 cm in length. Round–section for all of its length except for 2 cm at the thicker end which is square in cross section.

Townland; Doonagore, (Castle), Parish Killiagh

Harp peg, Bronze

Found just under the sod inside wall C between the butress and wall G. In poor condition being rather heavily corroded. Round sectioned for all of its length except for about 2.4 cm at the thicker end which is rectangular in cross section. Length 11 cm.

National Museum of Ireland: Archaeological Acquisitions in the Year 1959, Authors A. T. Lucas et al
Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. Vol 91, No 1 (1961). p 102

211. Bronze harp–peg

Found in ring–fort in Gorticleave td, C. Monaghan.

Slightly bent. head square in cross-section with a longitudinal indentation on each side. The shaft is round in cross section and the end has an oval perforation for the string 3mm by 2mm; Length 9.1 cm; diameter of shaft 6mm; head 5.5 mm by 5.5 mm.

National Museum of Ireland: Archaeological Acquisitions in the Year 1965, Author, A.T. Lucas.
Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. Vol 98, No 2, (1968). p 154

369, Harp peg, bronze

From a crannog in Monalty Lough. Monaltyduff td, Co. Monaghan.

Circular in cross section for most of its length. Stem tapers to a narrow end in which is s concave hollow. There is a perforation for the string through this end. The other end is rectangular in cross section, and is ornamented with a St. Andrew's cross on top. L. 4.8 cm; W. at head 6 mm; D of shaft 5.5 mm.

370, Harp peg, bronze

From a crannog in Monalty Lough, Monaltyduff td. Co Monaghan. Tapered.

The wider end is square in cross section the rest of the object is circular in section. There are two incised transverse lines where the cross section changes from square to round. L. 10.5 cm; D of shaft, 7 mm; W of head 8 mm.

Excavations at Clontuskert Priory, Co Galway. Authors; Thomas Fanning, Michael Dolley, Geraldine Roche. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, Section C: Archaeology, Celtic Studies, History, Linguistics, Literature. Vol. 76, (1976). p 128–129

Harp–peg (252).

Circular in cross–section, splaying slightly to a rectangular section at one end. Small perforation through thinner end. Fine dark–green patena. Found within the rectangular structure at north–east corner of transept, in the upper levels. L. 6.45cm

Parallels for this and another harp–peg (183) were found at Parkes Castle, Leitrim and on a Late Medieval trackway at Shannon, Co Clare.

Some Destroyed Sites at Shannon Airport, County Clare. Author; Etienne Rynne. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, Section C: Archaeology, Celtic Studies,History, Linguistics, Literature Vol 63 (1962–1964), pp 268–269.

Bronze Harp–peg, (39)

Round in cross–section, except at its thicker end where it is rectangular. There is a small perforation through its thinner end. 7.4 cm long.

Liscarroll Castle, Co Cork. Cork Historical and Archaeological Society Journal vol 42, (1937), 92–117.

Described in an email to the Liscarroll website from the National Museum of Ireland as accession number 1936:3742, harp peg, probably 15th or 16th century. Found in a hole near the upper part of the S.W tower. As illustrated in the journal it would appear to be about 11cm long with a decorated head.

Excavations which have reported finds of Harp pins but no details are available

Parks Castle, Kilmore, Co Leitrim

Bronze harp pins

Database of Irish Excavation Reports, G782352, 1972:0022

Clogh Oughter Castle, Lough Oughter, Co Cavan

18th C finds include Harp pegs

Database of Irish Excavation Reports, H357078, 1987:06

81–83 Grand Parade, Cork. Medieval city wall.

17th century harp tuning peg from un–stratified material

Database of Irish Excavation Reports, W67175, 1992:022

Wilde. W R, A Descriptive Catalogue of the Antiquities in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy (1863).

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS are represented by a collection of twenty–two harp pins, varying in length from 2⅛ to 4⅛ inches; square in the head, and perforated in the small extremity for holding the string. They are numbered from 17 to 32, in continuation of the trumpets, described at p.633; the majority were obtained from crannoges.

[Apart from a slight discrepancy in the mathematics, unless some of the numbered finds used the same identification number for more than one pin; these pins should ultimately have ended up in the National Museum of Ireland along with most of the rest of the R.I.A collections. Since these were noted in 1863 they are in addition to the later National Museum acquisitions. Efforts are currently underway to locate and measure them].

Scotland

Dornoch

Museum Number inv.2001.020.024; Grid ref NH795900

Harp peg, copper alloy, Size 64 mm x 7t mm

Interim Report of Archaeological Work for the Dornoch Development Area, Dornoch, Highland. Undertaken prior to a proposed housing development to the north of Dornoch. Register of finds.

Finlaggan, Islay

During a series of excavations in the early 1990’s undertaken at Finlaggan, the former centre of the Lordship of the Isles, on the island of Islay, three copper alloy harp pins were found. Following the forfeiture of the last Lord of the Isles in 1493 the buildings at Finlaggan seem to have been deliberately dismantled; the detailed archaeological reports of the excavations are still in the process of publication, but the finds are likely to pre–date that period of destruction.

Pin 1.

Overall Length: 52 mm

Distance of hole from end of pin: 5 mm

Length of squared section at 'Key' end: 12 mm

Pin 2.

Overall Length unknown as it is broken at the hole, but its length to that point is 68 mm

Diameter at (a): 5mm

Diameter at Broken end: 3 mm

Length of squared section: 13 mm

Pin 3.

This 'pin' is an example that it was possible to have a lapse in concentration during the manufacturing process. The pin can best be described as 'half made' but with no possibility of finishing the process. The pin had been cast in a mould, but had erroneously been cast horizontally creating a half round blank which could not have been turned into a useable pin. In general dimensions it has similarities with the pin found at Castle Sween, (see below).

Overall length of blank: 75 mm

Diameter at (b): 3 mm

Length of squared section: 20 mm

Width of blank at squared end: 10 mm

Castle Sween, Knapdale, Argyll & Bute.

Copper alloy harp peg. 14th/15th century.

Overall length     75 mm

Diameter at (a)    5 mm

Diameter at (b)    4 mm

Length of squared section 15 mm

(see the peg drawing at the beginning for correlation of measurements)

For description and drawing of this find see: Gordon Ewart & Jon Triscott, Archaelogical Excavations at Castle Sween, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 126 (1996), 535–536. Please note the preceding link will open the article in pdf form via the website of the Archaeology Data Service of the University of York.

Urquhart Castle, Loch Ness.

Two almost matching copper alloy pegs found in previous excavations there and now on display in the visitor centre museum. One is 63 mm in length with a string hole of approximately 1.5 mm diameter; the other is 67 mm in length with string hole of approximately 1mm diameter. Both show signs of having had their shafts hammered into a round shape and their ‘heads’ have been filed to taper from stem to tip.

Wales

Montgomery Castle

Excavations at Montgomery Part II, in Archaeologia Cambrensis, volume 142 (1993, printed 1994)
Illustration number 45, page 202. Description number 45 page 204.

24 identical bronze harp pins, found in 1967 in post–1649 destruction rubble above the cobbled surface of the Inner Ward, east of the Well–Tower entrance. On stratigraphic grounds, they may post date the destruction of the castle.

Overall lengths                    102 to 105 mm

Length of squared section    24 mm

Further discussion by Graeme Lawson in Archaeologia Cambrensis, volume 143 (1994, printed 1996) pages 196–203.

Links to photographs of one of these pins: Length of the pin and decorated end of the pin.