lyra

noun4

1. •
   A vertically suspended hoop used in acrobatic performances.
2. •
   A bowed string musical instrument used in the Byzantine Empire.

   • A Persian scholar of the early tenth century, lbn Khurradadhbih, reported the lyra to be in widespread use throughout the empire, along with organs and bagpipes. — 2013
3. •
   A bowed instrument used in folk music in Crete, Greece.

   • According to the Greek musicologist Fivos Anoyanakis, the piriform lyras of Crete have, at various times throughout history, been produced in different sizes and styles. — 1980
4. •
   (old-fashioned) The middle portion of the ventral surface of the fornix of the brain.

   • The vessels of the brain generally are often distended and gorged with blood, the lyra especially being fully injected. — 1840