“I Most glorious of immortals, Zeus
The many named, almighty evermore,
Nature's great Sovereign, ruling all by law
Hail to thee! On thee 'tis meet and right” – Cleanthes of Assos (331-233 B.C.), Stobaeus, 'Eclogae,'I, 1, 12
| Recently, Luthieros’ members managed finally to discover the most impressive, truly beautiful and longest animal horns to be found, by animals that have passed away due to natural causes. This is a one in a lifetime situation, as we always use only what nature “gives” us at any given time. So, here we are… we just finished the construction of the most impressive Kylix Lyre that we will ever built, something quite obvious by the photographs! We can’t possible know when but mostly if we will be able to manufacture an instrument like that in the foreseeable future, so we have just one item here and a “first come first served” situation! :)
| Check out some videos of our Kylix Lyres being played by the most well-known ancient lyre player around the world, Michael Levy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O8Iyvb7QuA
If you ever thought of having a unique ancient artefact in your home or even learn how to play an ancient music instrument invented by a God itself, then you never had an opportunity like this before… This listing is for the “King”, of our ancient Greek Kylix’s lyres, named after Zeus, the Greatest of all Ancient Gods (Δίας in Greek).
Zeus (/ˈzjuːs/ zews; Ancient Greek: Ζεύς, Zeús, [zdeǔ̯s]; Modern Greek: Δίας, Días [ˈði.as]) was the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion, who ruled as king of the gods of Mount Olympus. His name is cognate with the first element of his Roman equivalent Jupiter. Zeus is the child of Cronus and Rhea, the youngest of his siblings to be born, though sometimes reckoned the eldest as the others required disgorging from Cronus's stomach. In most traditions, he is married to Hera, by whom he is usually said to have fathered Ares, Hebe, and Hephaestus. At the oracle of Dodona, his consort was said to be Dione, by whom the Iliad states that he fathered Aphrodite. Zeus was also infamous for his erotic escapades. These resulted in many godly and heroic offspring, including Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Persephone, Dionysus, Perseus, Heracles, Helen of Troy, Minos, and the Muses.
The Ancient Greek “κύλιξ” was a type of wine-drinking cup that was used mainly during symposiums in the ancient world. For this reason, they were often decorated with depictions of Dionysos (the god of wine) and his satyrs, along with scenes of love or even orgies.
The Kylix lyres are named after that unique ancient cup, due to their primitive and authentic design (with a look like a tortoise shell for soundbox, and animal horns for arms). Every one of these lyres is one-of-a-kind, as no two tortoise shells or animal horns can be the same.
What’s more, what differentiate kylix lyres from other ancient replicas is their compact size, the ability to carry them easily and so be able to use them all the time, along with their amazing durability (due to the really strong nature of the materials in use). Regarding their sound quality, they have a more pitchy and ancient-like sound due to the limited length of their strings.
The “Kylix Lyre of Zeus” the biggest Kylix that we have ever made, with 13 strings, a beautiful instrument not only for its craftsmanship but also for its one of a kind potentials. In practice, this means that we have chosen the best shaped horns and look like tortoise shells that we have found during the last decade for this premium and massive kylix lyre… a “Kylix lyre of Zeus” is the best lyre of Kylix lyres that has ever came out from our workshop! In practice, this means that the sound quality too is at the top of every Kylix we had ever made.
Manufactured at the premises of the ancient Europos (Northern Greece) by a family of musicians and luthiers, the “Pan Lyre of Zeus” is made of (and only) natural materials available during the antiquity. This ancient artifact was evolved to become a modern music instrument ready to be used by both amateur and professional musicians (for example, a modern tuning method was chosen instead of the ancient hard-to-use one). For all the minor (but very important) alterations, latest technologies were used during the prototyping phase (such as 3d Scanning and 3d Modeling).
This lyre has 13 gut strings (a set of nylon stings are included too, for greater durability). The soundbox is made by a look like tortoise shell, the sound-board by animal skin, the arms by animal horns, the tailpiece, the crossbar and the bridge and the keys by wood, and the plectrum by wood. The lyre’s height is 52 cm with 48 cm width, its soundbox dimensions are 21 x 13 x 7,5 cm, while the length of the vibrating strings is at the impressive range of 40,5 cm (the player can adjust this length by slightly moving the bridge of the instrument).
Along with every lyre, a handbook is provided including all the different ancient Greek scales (for tuning the lyre) in the Aristoxenian tradition such as the Mixolydian, the Phrygian, the Dorian etc. What’s more, the oldest music melodies that had survived are also included such as the Hellenistic “Seikilos Epitaph” (2.000 years old, the oldest known complete melody of the human kind), and further descriptions regarding what modes were used in the antiquity for evoking specific feelings such as sorrow, happiness, bravery etc. Last, a full-color 68-pages book (in the form of a .pdf file) will be given upon request, with more than 100 photos, describing the research behind our lyres and the whole design process.
Since the beginning of 2015, every Luthieros lyre comes with a wooden plectrum, an extra set of nylon strings and a unique hand-strap (in Greek: “τελαμών”). A premium package, for a premium and authentic music instrument! A beautifully handmade premium wooden case for storing and moving around the instrument is also available here; https://www.etsy.com/listing/204283256/handmade-wooden-cases-for-our-ancient?ref=shop_home_active_1!
Important: The Pan Lyre of Zeus of the photos is one of a kind, meaning that unfortunately we have not found similar horns, making this instrument available only for one true lover of such detailed craftsmanship.
The lyres available for purchase are very limited. Needles to say that no animals were harmed…
“Goat-footed, horned, Bacchanalian Pan, fanatic pow’r, from whom the world began. Whose various parts by thee inspir’d, combine in endless dance and melody divine. In thee a refuge from our fears we find, those fears peculiar to the human kind. Thee shepherds, streams of water, goats rejoice, thou lov’st the chace, and Echo’s secret voice […]“ – Orphic Hymn to Pan
| Learn how to play the ancient Greek lyre!
Michael Levy, the most well-known ancient lyre player around the world, put together for us 11 video lessons (available online at our website). No matter if you are a completely amateur or a professional music player, you can play the lyre following Michael’s steps: http://en.luthieros.com/learn-to-play-the-lyre
| Take a taste of how The King Lyre of Pan (a version smaller that "The Kylix Lyre of Zeus" looks and sounds like here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZu1cTAiqEw
| Hear how our ancient lyres sound:
(1) Hear how the “Game of Thrones” theme song would sound like if it was played in Ancient Greece (must-see), hear audio recordinga from various of our lyres, or watch players around the world playing ancient melodies with Luthieros Music Instruments: http://en.luthieros.com/be-inspired-by-players-around-the-world
(2) Check the latest music album by world-known lyre player, Michael Levy, using Luthieros’ Lyre of Apollo! Support his music on iTunes or his website: http://www.ancientlyre.com/
| Check a short presentation of “The Lyre 2.0 Project”:
https://vimeo.com/85653759 (in English)
| Read the extended review of one of our lyres by the most well-known ancient lyre player around the world: http://www.ancientlyre.com/the_lyre_20_project/
* Dozens of music stringed instruments around the world are direct descendants of the ancient Greek lyre: gue (Scotland), rote (England), crwth (Wales), hearpe (Germanic or Anglo-Saxon lyre), giga (Norway), talharpa (Estonia), jouhikko (Finland), knar (Armenia), lutnia (Poland), kinnor (Israel), sarangi (Nepal), sammu or tanbura or zami or zinar (Iraq, Arabian peninsula, Yemen), barbat or ektara (Pakistan), ektara (India and Bangladesh), nares-jux (Siberia), chang (Iran), kissar or tanbura or simsimiyya (Egypt, Sudan), begena or dita or krar (Ethiopia), endongo or ntongoli (Uganda), kibugander or litungu or nyatiti or obokano (Kenya) and litungu (Tanzania).
