Heirloom Harp
Amongst the many artifacts and traditions held tightly to the hearts of the Laguardan Manakaya is the Heirloom Harp. It is a wooden musical instrument, typically embellished with floral carvings and gold leaf, and in some cases can also be strung with golden strings. It is seen as a sacred object with great purpose amongst the Manakaya, posited to possibly go back to when the Manakayan once dwelled within the South Sea, and sung songs to live amongst the fish and life. The Heirloom Harp is played by the Matriarch of the family, to start each gathering of the family it will be taken down from it's place on the mantle and strung, while those of the family take their places around the circle. This can either be a table, or simply a circle on the floor.
Manufacturing process
The Act of constructing a Heirloom Harp is one that takes years, if not a decade to fully complete. The main body of the harp and the functional core of it is usually completed in sometime under 6 months, but as is tradition the Harp is not complete until all living members of the family have notched a small line into the length of the Harp's column. Doing so can take a great amount of organising and usually take years and months to fully get around to doing everyone, especially given to the size and availability of the family undergoing such a task. However it is important to Manakayan tradition to do so, as it is how each member of the family spiritually leaves their mark on the family and the history therein. Usually a Manakayan who marries into the same culture will leave three marks in their life, onto the harp of the family they were born into, of the one that they founded, and of one of their children.
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