26 June, 2018 - 02:45 Robin Whitlock
5,000-year-old musical scene found on pottery in Israel may reflect sacred marriage ritual
Archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority working at Bet Ha-‘Emeq have discovered a shard from an early Bronze Age storage vessel depicting scenes from what seems to be a ‘sacred marriage’ ritual. The images are on a 5,000 year old seal which may be one of the world’s oldest depictions of musicians.
All the figures are female. One of them is playing a musical instrument similar to a harp which may be a lyre. The instrument, the name of which is Greek (λÏÏα, lýra), is known primarily from its use in classical Greece. It is similar to a harp but a lot smaller. It has seven strings and the earliest known image of one is that which appears in the sarcophagus of Hagia Triada , a Minoan settlement in Crete. The instrument was usually played with a plectrum and was also depicted in various mythological scenes. According to Greek myth it was originally invented by the god Hermes who stole a herd of sacred cattle when he was young. He made the lyre from the entrails of one of the cows using a tortoise shell as a soundbox.
https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/5000-year-old-musical-scene-found-pottery-israel-020416
