I was agreeably surprised to find that the late Dr. A. S. Murray, Keeper of the Greek and Roman Departments of the British Museum, in his last lectures on Sculpture, delivered by him at Burlington House, but a few weeks before his lamented death, had selected this Praxitelean Monument for the subject of his discourses. Referring to the Apollo Harp he said “it is quite beautiful.” The coincidence of choice attracted me, and calling to mind the learned Keeper’s courteous manner, and kindly help in former years, I had planned another interview, with questions which he from his stores of knowledge would have satisfied—but it was too late—he had passed through The Open Gateway. Intimations of a proposed sequel to this work will be found in the last two pages of the volume, new and valuable materials having been brought to hand by recent discoveries. Goethe in his “conversations with Eckermann” said that a book should be judged, first, by the aim the author proposed to himself—next, by the degree in which he had succeeded in accomplishing his aim. I may not have remembered the exact words, “’tis sixty years since” I read them, but the purport of the saying is there. My aim in writing has been to give the lover of music a companionable book, full of information of a kind likely as I think to be of interest to both amateur and professional. My own enthusiasm on the subject has, I hope, been tempered by ease in presentation, for I am wishful that the hours given to the reading of these pages may leave with all readers a pleasant memory. HERMANN SMITH. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE. AT THE GATES OF THE PAST 1 CHAPTER II. IN THE LAND OF MYTH—THE PURSUIT OF THE GODS 14 CHAPTER III. IN THE LAND OF EGYPT—THE LADY MAKET AND HER FLUTES 25 CHAPTER IV. IN THE LAND OF EGYPT—MORE EGYPTIAN FLUTES—THE EVIDENCES OF THE SCALE—THE TEACHINGS OF EXPERIMENTS 42 CHAPTER V. IN THE LAND OF ETRURIA—THE GRECO-ETRUSCAN DOUBLE FLUTES—THE BULBED OR SUBULO FLUTES 63 CHAPTER VI. IN THE LAND OF GREECE—FROM ETRURIA TO ATHENS—THE SWEET MONAULOS 82 CHAPTER VII. IN THE LAND OF GREECE—THE SILKWORM FLUTES, OR BOMBYX FLUTES 93 CHAPTER VIII. IN OSCAN LAND—ITALIA—FOUND AT POMPEII—THE GRECO-ROMAN FLUTES 107 CHAPTER IX. BACK TO THE LAND OF THE NILE—EGYPT REVEALS THE SECRET 118 CHAPTER X. THE ISLES OF GREECE—MIDAS THE GLORIOUS 126 CHAPTER XI. NEAR THE CITY OF CHARITES—THE MYSTERY OF THE “SLENDER BRASS” 137 CHAPTER XII. AT THE DELPHIC TEMPLE—THE MUSIC HEARD BY THE GREEKS 143