Buy Kravik Lyre
Buy Kravik Lyre
The Viking lyre is a wide wooden case connected to a special crossbar to which strings are attached. There can be from 7 to 12 of them, depending on the version of the tool. The string stand, or bridge, transmits their vibration to the hollow body to enhance the sound.
Viking lyres were made of various types of wood, strings were made from animal veins, and a bridge was made from antler, bronze, and amber.
How the Viking lyres appeared
Lyres were probably brought to ancient Scandinavia by Vikings who visited the Mediterranean around the sixth century AD. It was at this time that the earliest depiction of a Viking lyre found by archaeologists dates back. He was discovered on the island of Gotland, in the town of Lerbru Celstede.
Scientists find evidence from the 11th–15th centuries that lyres were played throughout Scandinavia, both during the Viking age and later. The appearance of the instrument differs in different regions, so each type of lyre is named after the place of discovery:
lyre from Nuryum
Lyra from Hilest
Lyra from Ayust
The lyre of Mu
Lyra from Kravik
Lyra from Olya
Lyra from Reldal
The lyre from Trondheim
Carvings in the churches of Hilest, Ayust and Nuryum depict Gunnar, the hero of the Elder Edda, playing the lyre in a pit with snakes. The same story is carved on a wooden bench in Lisleherad, and on a drinking vessel from a place called Mu.
A 13th-century wall with a painting of the biblical King David was found in the Danish Ole. He holds a book in one hand and a lyre in the other.
The Reldal church painting and the sculpture from Trondheim Cathedral depict people using an object similar to a bow. Therefore, some researchers attribute the instruments found there to Viking bowed lyres — talharps.
Separately, let's talk about lyra from Kravik. This variety appeared in the 14th century, and it is very popular among modern performers of Viking music.
What did the lyre mean to the Vikings?
Most likely, the plucked lyres were owned by noble people. This is indicated by the images of rulers and aristocrats with these tools in their hands. Lyres are also found in the burials of soldiers who, apparently, were poets or storytellers and accompanied themselves.
But bowed lyres were more often played by people of lower social status. Scientists believe that this allowed the instrument to reach our days.
How the Vikings played the lyre
From the images found in England and continental Europe, we can tell that the musicians were playing sitting with the lyre on their left hip. They plucked the strings with the fingers of their right hand, and muted them with the fingers of their left.
Buy a Viking lyre
You can purchase a wide variety of designer and authentic Viking lyres in the official shop of the ScandicInstruments workshop.
Viking lyres were made of various types of wood, strings were made from animal veins, and a bridge was made from antler, bronze, and amber.
How the Viking lyres appeared
Lyres were probably brought to ancient Scandinavia by Vikings who visited the Mediterranean around the sixth century AD. It was at this time that the earliest depiction of a Viking lyre found by archaeologists dates back. He was discovered on the island of Gotland, in the town of Lerbru Celstede.
Scientists find evidence from the 11th–15th centuries that lyres were played throughout Scandinavia, both during the Viking age and later. The appearance of the instrument differs in different regions, so each type of lyre is named after the place of discovery:
lyre from Nuryum
Lyra from Hilest
Lyra from Ayust
The lyre of Mu
Lyra from Kravik
Lyra from Olya
Lyra from Reldal
The lyre from Trondheim
Carvings in the churches of Hilest, Ayust and Nuryum depict Gunnar, the hero of the Elder Edda, playing the lyre in a pit with snakes. The same story is carved on a wooden bench in Lisleherad, and on a drinking vessel from a place called Mu.
A 13th-century wall with a painting of the biblical King David was found in the Danish Ole. He holds a book in one hand and a lyre in the other.
The Reldal church painting and the sculpture from Trondheim Cathedral depict people using an object similar to a bow. Therefore, some researchers attribute the instruments found there to Viking bowed lyres — talharps.
Separately, let's talk about lyra from Kravik. This variety appeared in the 14th century, and it is very popular among modern performers of Viking music.
What did the lyre mean to the Vikings?
Most likely, the plucked lyres were owned by noble people. This is indicated by the images of rulers and aristocrats with these tools in their hands. Lyres are also found in the burials of soldiers who, apparently, were poets or storytellers and accompanied themselves.
But bowed lyres were more often played by people of lower social status. Scientists believe that this allowed the instrument to reach our days.
How the Vikings played the lyre
From the images found in England and continental Europe, we can tell that the musicians were playing sitting with the lyre on their left hip. They plucked the strings with the fingers of their right hand, and muted them with the fingers of their left.
Buy a Viking lyre
You can purchase a wide variety of designer and authentic Viking lyres in the official shop of the ScandicInstruments workshop.