Image:Flemish harpsichord.png

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Harpsichord in Flemish style, that came in use in the 17th century and later evolved in the French ones.

Under the front part of the lid it is written in Latin "SINE SCIENTIA ARS NIHIL EST" (Jean Vignot, 1390?). The correct translation would be "art without knowledge is nothing".

In the 14th century (Middle Ages) the word scientia referred not only to science as we perceive it today, but to knowledge in general. The term ars referred to skill, that is to applying knowledge (scientia) for performing a profession or for making something - clothes, shoes, weapons, masonry, painting, playing an instrument, whatever. A skill (ars) and knowledge (scientia) were tigthly intervowen and could not exist one without the other.

Under the back part of the lid another Latin saying is written: "DUM VIXI TACUI MORTUA DULCE CANO". This means:"Living, I was mute, dead, I sweetly sing." That refers to the tree the wood of which was used to make the instrument.

  • Photo credit: FrWiki: Ratigan

This instrument was built from a kit by Zuckermann.

File history

Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version.
Click on date to download the file or see the image uploaded on that date.


The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed):