O'ffogerty Harp

The Offogerty harp is a wire strung Irish (or Celtic) harp that dates from the 17th century. These instruments have a magical, ringing voice with a long sustain; their sound lies somewhere between a harpsichord and a bell.

This is a print of my digital painting of the Offogerty Harp - it's 16 by 20 inches in size at 300 DPI, and the image is based on a photograph from Robert Bruce Armstrong's "The Irish and Highland Harps". Purists may note that I have taken a couple of small liberties with the painting. Here the harp is superimposed over a bold Celtic Knotwork border; faint interlace designs also appear in the background margins and the backdrop, behind the borders.

Once the property of Cornelius O'ffogerty, this harp is of the type we call a "large, low-headed" Irish harp, which is typical for the seventeenth century. It is not highly decorated but its lines are both striking and unusual among surviving examples - the large scroll at the end of the harmonic curve is its most distinctive feature.

Its soundboard was pierced for thirty-six strings, while the harmonic curve never carried more than thirty-five tuning pins. Because only thirty-four string holes are visible in the photograph I've chosen to string it with thirty-four strings - hopefully not further adding to the confusion.