An abridgement of the notable woorke of Polidore Vergile conteignyng the deuisers and firste finders out as well of artes, ministeries, feactes & ciuill ordinaunces, as of rites, and ceremonies, commo[n]ly vsed in the churche: and the originall beginnyng of the same. Co[m]pendiously gathered by Thomas Langley

¶The .xii. Chapiter. Who found Musical instrumentes and brought th••m into Italy.

IT is sayde that Marcurye founde the Harpe fyrst.* 1.1 For as he walked by the Ryuer Nilus after an ebbe, he foūd

a Tortyse al wythered, and nothyng remainyng but the senewes, whiche as he fortuned to strycke on them, made a certayne sounde: And after the patrone of that he fashioned an Harpe, and accordyng to the thre ty∣mes of the yeare,* 1.2 Sommer, Wynter, and Spryngtyme, he putte to it thre Strynges, a Treble, a Base, and a Meane.

Thys instrumente he gaue to A∣pollo, and Apollo delyuered it to Orpheus: Some thyncke Amphion founde it.* 1.3 I fynde that the Harpe hadde seuen strynges to resemble the seuen doughters of Atlas, whereof Maia Mercurie his mother was one. And then after that were twoo other putte to,* 1.4 to represente the nyne Mu∣ses.

Some referre the orygynall of the Harpe and Pype too Apollo, for his Image in Delos (as they saye,) hath in the right hande a bowe, and in the lefte hande the goddesses of fa∣uour. Wherof one hath a harpe, an other a shalme,* 1.5 y^e third a pype. Shal∣mes were at the beginnyng made of Cranes legges, & after of great reed:

Dardanus Trezenius vsed fyrst to play & syng with them.* 1.6 Panne an vp∣landy she god, found the pype of smal reed fyrst to solace his loue. Euse∣bius saith Cibele found it, and some suppose it was Apollo. Timarias played on the Harpe or Lute, fyrst withoute dittye,* 1.7 and Amphion song fyrst to the Lute, but the Harpe was found afore by Tubal and fashioned like the Greke letter delta.* 1.8

Hermophilus fyrst distributed the pulse and beatyng of the vaynes too certayne measures of Musicke. And the Prophete Dauid founde dyuerse instrumentes, as Regalles and Na∣bles.* 1.9 The Troglodites founde the Dulcimers. Pises Terrenes founde the Brasen trompe,* 1.10 whiche the Ter∣renes footemenne vsed in theyr war∣res, some thyncke it was Tyrteus or Dyrceus an Athenien. For what tyme the Lacedemonians made war against the Messenians,* 1.11 and the war¦res were long differred, they had an∣swere of Apollo, that if they would wynne the feelde, they should haue a capitayne of Athens.

AND the Atheniens in dispyte

sent to them one Dyrceus a lame and one eyed felowe,* 1.12 and all out of shape: albeit thei receiued him and vsed his counsail, and he taught them to play on trumpes, whiche were so feareful to y^e Messenians, by reason of straūge¦nes of the noyse that they fled furth with, and so they obteyned victorye, but in dede (as Iosephus witnesseth) Moses the valiaunt capitaine of the Hebrues founde the Troumpe and made it of siluer.* 1.13 The Archadiēs did fyrst bryng al Musical instrumentes into Italye, where afore that tyme thei vsed only vplādishe pypes. Thu∣cydides writeth that y^e Lacedemoni∣ans vsed fyrst in war Shalmes,* 1.14 Cla∣rious and Rebeckes, to thentent that when they were ready to the warres by suche plaiyng they myght better kepe array.* 1.15 The Romaines fotemen ioyned Droumslades with Trumpet¦tes. Haliattes kyng of the Lydians had in the battail againste the Mile∣sians Pipers and Fidlers plaiyng to¦gether,* 1.16 the Gretians, as thei went to warre had Lutes goyng afore them to modefie theyr pase, all other coun∣trees (as wee dooe nowe) vsed trum∣pettes

in battail.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Harpe. Marcur••▪
• * 1.2

  Thre stryn∣ges in the harpe.
• * 1.3

  Amphyon.
• * 1.4

  Goddesses of sauoure.
• * 1.5

  Shalmes.
• * 1.6

  Dardanius. Trezenus Pype.
• * 1.7

  Singyng to the Lute.
• * 1.8

  Δ
• * 1.9

  Regalles. Nables.
• * 1.10

  Dulcimers.
• * 1.11

  Brasen trōpe
• * 1.12

  Dyrceus ca∣pitayne of the Lacedemoni∣ans.
• * 1.13

  Moses foūd the trompe Archadiens brought in∣strumentes into Italy.
• * 1.14

  Lacedemo¦nians maner in warre.
• * 1.15

  Drumslades. in warre.
• * 1.16

  Pypers and Fidlers.