In 1910, Phoebe Anna Traquair decorated a grand piano that had been commissioned for the Great Hall at Lympne Castle in Kent. Her painted designs for the piano reflect some of the literary and visual sources which inspired her work.

The decoration for this piano was inspired by three sources, united by the themes of music and love. The Willowwood sonnets, written by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, are a mystical meditation on the joys and sorrows of love. The Song of Solomon from the Old Testament expresses love for the Divine. And finally the Greek god Pan, playing his pipes, symbolises a beguiling eroticism. 

We delve into the inspiration and interpretation behind some of the panels on this extraordinary piano.

The Song of Songs

The Song of Songs, from the Christian Old Testament is also known as the Song of Solomon.

It presents the voices of a bridegroom and a bride, praising each other and longing for each other. Jewish tradition interprets the work as an allegory of the relationship between God and Israel.

In Christianity, in addition to its literal meaning of a romantic song between man and woman, the poem has been read as an allegory of Christ (the bridegroom) and his Church (the bride). 

Pan and Psyche

The story of Pan and Psyche is another recurring theme in Traqauir’s work. It is shown here in one of the painted panels for the Willowood Piano. 

In classical Greek myth, Psyche was Greek goddess of the soul who was pursued by the amorous god Pan. River nymphs helped Psyche to escape his advances by transforming her into hollow water reeds. Pan cut the reeds to create the first Pan pipes, which are also known as syrinx.

The Willowwood sonnets by Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Originally written in 1868, the Willowwood sonnets are part of a larger work by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, The House of Life. The sonnets explore the author’s longing for lost love.

Phoebe Traquair's first treatment of the sonnets was in illuminated manuscripts of Rossetti’s poems in 1890. Traquair’s designs reflect Rossetti’s own painting style, itself heavily influenced by medieval illuminated manuscripts.

In 1910, her painted design for the grand piano for Lympne Castle incorporated a scene from the sonnets on the panel above the keyboard.

The Willowwood Piano is on display in the Design for Living gallery at the National Museum of Scotland.