Pict Carnyx

The Deskford Pict war trumpet was found in 1816 at Deskford in Banffshire in the north east of Scotland, about 40 miles from the site of the Battle of Mons Graupius. It is the oldest surviving musical instrument in Scotland, and is now in the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh. The Deskford trumpet known as a 'carnyx' is dated to the period of the Roman invasion of Caledonia and is in the classic shape of a boar's head which originally had a movable wooden 'tongue' that added vibration to its strident sound. It is one of only five that have been found throughout the whole of Europe though they were widely used in battles against the Romans. A Roman historian named Diodorus Siculus said of them, 'Their trumpets again are of a peculiar barbarian kind; they blow into them and produce a harsh sound which suits the tumult of war.' He described the noise of one battle, 'the dreadful din, for there were innumerable horn blowers and trumpeters and, as the whole army were shouting their war-cries at the same time, there was such a tumult of sound that it seemed that not only the trumpeters and the soldiers but all the country round had got a voice and caught up the cry.' The Romans found the sound of the trumpet so intimidating that they made the carnyx the official emblem of their enemy.

A blast from the past.

In the late 1990's John Kenny reconstructed a playable carnyx based on the one found at Deskford, brought this 2,000 year old instrument alive and recorded several CD's. John is playing it as a musician for modern listeners but the stridence and volume of the instrument comes over well. Click the music link below to hear a sample of John playing the Carnyx.