IRISH HARP ((Irish cruit; Welsb, crwth; English, crowde). The cruit was originally a small harp or lyre, plucked with the fingers as in the case of the Roman fidicula; it was sub played with a bow, and is mentioned by an Irish poet who flourished about 400 s.c. It is justly regarded as the progenitor of the Crotta. Saint Venantius Fortunatus (530 609 A.D.) calls the cruit a Crotta; and we team from Gerbert that it was an oblong-shaped in The term *Irish Church* has been used for a long time by a certain school of Anglican controversialists in support of the theory of the separate origin of the Church of England. Their contention is that the Church of Ireland was never in affiliation with the Church of Rome and that, inasmuch as England has re ceived Christianity mainly from Ireland, the authority of the popes in England had been usurped, and England was not bound by any ties, traditional or other. This contention is based on the fact that the Church of Ireland differed from the Church on the Continent in the method of determining the date of Easter; in the form of tonsure; and in the manner of administering baptism. The difference in the manner of computing the Easter Season had caused much confusion, since the two methods prevailed in England. These differences were adjusted by the Synod of Whitby, and from that time forward England conformed to the Roman usage. To refute their contention it strument, with a neck and finger-board, having six strings of which four were placed on the finger-board and two outside it — the two open strings representing treble G, with its lower octave. In fact, it was a small harp, and was generally played resting on the knee, or some times placed on a table before the performer.
The large harp was termed the Clairseach, *the festive or heroic harp of the chiefs and ladies, as also of the bards,* having from 29 to 58 strings, and even 60, but as a rule 30 strings. Its normal compass was from CC (the
lowest string on the violoncello) to D, in all 30 notes, that is, almost four octaves. It was gen erally tuned in the scale of G, but, by altera tion of one string a semitone (effected by means of the ceis or harp fastener), the key might be changed to C or D. In those keys the diatonic scale was perfect and complete, similar to ours now in use. The ancient Irish played the treble with the left hand and the bass with the right Among early representations of the Irish harp we find one in a manuscript of Saint Blase, quoted by Gerbert, dating from the close of the 9th century. Another one is on the panel of a sculptured cross at Ullard County, Kilkenny, dating from the 10th century, and which is first specimen of the harp with out a fore-pillar that has hitherto been found outside of There is a good re re sentation of an eight-stringed harp on the metal shrine of Saint Maedhoc, dating from the 9th century. The so-called °Brian Boru's Harp,' though not dating from the time of Brian, has a venerable antiquity, and belonged most certainly to the royal family of O'Brien. It has 30 metallic strings, having a compass from C below the bass stave to D above the treble stave.
The 19th century saw the introduction of chromatic harps with pedals and in recent years an improved harp in two sizes has been built by the American, Melville A. Clark. Consult Armstrong, R. B., The Irish and the Highland Harps) (Edinburgh 1906).