in
England. A very rare book (of which the British Museum does not possess
a copy), _The Cittharn Schoole_, written by Anthony Holborne in 1597, is
mentioned in Sir P. Leycester's manuscript commonplace book[3] dated
1656, "For the little Instrument called a _Psittyrne_ Anthony Holborne
and Tho. Robinson were most famous of any before them and have both of
them set out a booke of Lessons for this Instrument. Holborne has
composed a Basse-parte for the Viole to play unto the Psittyrne with
those Lessons set out in his booke. These lived about Anno Domini 1600."
Thomas Robinson's _New Citharen Lessons with perfect tunings for the
same from Foure course of strings to Fourteene course_, &c. (printed
London, 1609, by William Barley), contains illustrations of both kinds
of instruments. The fourteen-course cittern was also known in England as
_Bijuga_; the seven courses in pairs were stretched over the
finger-board, and the seven single strings, fastened to the grotesque
head, were stretched as in the lyre _a vide_ alongside the neck; all the
strings rested on the one flat bridge near the tail-piece. Robinson
gives instructions for learning to play the cittern and for reading the
tablature. John Playford's _Musick's Delight on the Cithren_ (London,
1666) also contains illustrations of the instrument as well as of the
viol da Gamba and Pochette; he claims to have revived the instrument and
restored it to what it was in the reign of Queen Mary.

The cittern probably owed its popularity at this time to the ease with
which it might be mastered and used to accompany the voice; it was one
of four instruments generally found in barbers' shops, the others being
the gittern, the lute and the virginals. The customers while waiting
took down the instrument from its peg and played a merry tune to pass
the time.[4] We read that when Konstantijn Huygens came over to England
and was received by James I. at Bagshot, he played to the king on the
cittern (cithara), and that his performance was duly appreciated and
applauded. He tells us that, although he learnt to play the barbiton in
a few weeks with skill, he had lessons from a master for two years on
the cittern.[5] On the occasion of a third visit he witnessed the
performance of some fine musicians and was astonished to hear a lady,
mother of twelve, singing in divine fashion, accompanying herself on the
cittern; one of these artists he calls Lanivius, the British Orpheus,
whose performan