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Image taken of the harp before being acquired by the Foundation
Item #: SCP-4XXX:
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-4XXX is to be contained and locked in any suitable cushioned box while in storage. Its strings may be changed with newer nylon strings if needed, as they do not change SCP-XXX‘s effects other than sound quality.
It is to be tuned in C Major with the bottom string being the F note. Experiments are to be conducted in a heavily sound-proofed room as to prevent any unwanted humans from being affected by SCP-4XXX.
This room is to be monitored by microphone while experimenters may instruct personnel via speakers. While escorting personnel in and out of the room containing SCP-4XXX, guards must wear earlplugs. When experimentation is complete, it must be confirmed that any personnel within the room are completely incapable of playing SCP-4XXX.
Description: SCP-4XXX is a 9-stringed harp instrument made of European Beech wood. Iron pins are used to hold the strings.
It was discovered by the [REDACTED] Archaeological research team in the ruins of Pompeii during excavation in October, 19██. It is suspected that it was
originally brought from elsewhere in Europe due to the harp’s shape, which was uncommon for stringed instruments in ancient Rome. The original strings, kept in storage, are made from goat intestine. Radiocarbon dating analysis shows the wood to be from around ███ B.C.E., which would mean that it was already over ███ years old during the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius near Pompeii.
SCP-4XXX has artistic carvings on its surface, thought to be a sort of signature by the maker.
When played, users enter a state wherein they play a specific tune regardless of skill level. If any “mistake” in the song is played, the finger which plucks the wrong string is cut off by the string. (Blood stains in the wood underneath the strings correspond with this phenomenon). This is the only circumstance where SCP-4XXX’s strings will cut dense material such as bone. This renders the user unable to continue playing correctly [see Addendum 1], and more fingers will be lost if further instrumentation is attempted. The user becomes unusually hostile to any potential listeners, seemingly unaffected by their injuries. Hostility ceases typically within a few hours. When taken away, subjects have no memory of SCP-4XXX or the testing, but will continue to sing or hum the song occasionally. No trend has been found relating to the time any one subject has been able to interact with SCP-4XXX.
If the song is completed during experimentation, the user will attempt to repeat playing it. The longest play session using SCP-4XXX lasted ████ minutes and the song was played only three times before mistakes were made. If any human is in attendance to the song being played (not including listeners through microphone/speakers), they will become hostile to its previous user and attempt to use it themselves. Any physical interference with the current user results in the user's fingers being cut off. When questioned, personnel who hear SCP-4XXX being played believe that the user is clearly incapable or unworthy of playing the instrument and that they instead should be the one using it. Such people are likely to attempt to acquire SCP-4XXX sometimes with hostile force, in order to interact with it themselves. No further reasoning is provided.
Addendum 1: On April █, 20██, Dr. ██████ performed an experiment on SCP- in which a previous user of the instrument was outfitted with six prosthetic fingertips on fingers which had been cut off by SCP-4XXX. These prosthetics were constructed of a standard silicon rubber. Upon playing SCP-4XXX, the D-class personnel was able to complete the song one time before mistakes were made. Four prosthetic fingertips and one previously unaffected fingertip were cut off during the session. After this experiment, it is suggested that all experiments be conducted by re-using suitable D-class personnel and outfitting them with prosthetic fingertips as used before, for the sake of conserving personnel and their fingers. Consult Dr. ██████ on the proper construction and application of these prosthetics if needed.
For level 2 or higher personnel, an attached recording and transcription of an experiment can be found below.
