Fig. 472. Mural crown.
Fig. 472. Mural crown.
Fig. 472. Mural crown.
Mural Crown(Her.) represents masonry, and is embattled. (SeeCorona.)
Mural Monument.A tablet fixed to a wall, &c.
Mural Painting.(SeeFresco,Tempera, &c.)
Murex, R. (1) A Triton’s horn or conch; (2)murex ferreus, a caltrap, thrown down to hinder the advance of cavalry, its long spikes being so arranged as to pierce into the horses’ feet, and so disable them. (SeeCaltraps.)
Murrey, O. E. A reddish purple or mulberry colour. The livery of the House of York.
Murrhina,Murrhea, andMyrrhina, R. Murrhine vases; they are spoken of by Pliny, and have given rise to interminable treatises and discussions, with the sole result that no light whatever has been thrown on the nature of these vases.
Murrhine Glass.(SeeGlass.)
Fig. 473. Walls of Megalopolis.
Fig. 473. Walls of Megalopolis.
Fig. 473. Walls of Megalopolis.
Murus, R. Walls as defences and fortifications, in contradistinction toparies, the wall of a building. Fig.473represents a portion of the walls of Megalopolis. (SeeMœnia.)
Muscarium, R. (musca, a fly). (1) A fly-flap. Hence (2) The tail of a horse. (3) A case in which papers were shut up in order to preserve them from fly-stains.
Muses, the personifications of the liberal arts, are represented conventionally as follows:—
Calliope. The Muse of epic poetry; a tablet and stylus, sometimes a roll.
Cleio. The Muse of history; seated in an arm-chair with an open roll of paper, sometimes with a sun-dial.
Euterpe. The Muse of lyric poetry; with a double flute.
Melpomene. The Muse of tragedy; with a tragic mask, the club of Hercules, and sword; crowned with the vine-leaves of Bacchus, and shod in thecothurnus; often heroically posed with one foot on a fragment of rock.
Terpsichore. The Muse of choral dance and religious song; with lyra andplectrum. As the Muse of religious poetry, her expression is dignified and earnest.
Erato. The Muse of erotic poetry and soft Lydian music; sometimes has the lyre, sometimes is represented dancing, always gentle andfemininein expression.
Polyhymnia. The Muse of the sublime hymn and divine tradition; usually appears without any attribute, in an attitude of meditation; sometimes the inscriptionΜΥΘΟΥΣ(of the myth).
Urania. The Muse of astronomy; points with a staff to a celestial globe. (Lachesis, one of the Parcæ, has the same attributes.)
Thaleia. The Muse of pastoral life, of comedy, and of idyllic poetry; appears with the comic mask, a shepherd’s staff, and a wreath of ivy, or basket; sometimes dressed in a sheepskin.
The Muses are sometimes represented with feathers on their heads, alluding to their contest with the Sirens, whom they stripped of their wing feathers, which they wore as ornaments. (Hirt. Mythologisches Bilderbuch, p. 203.)
Museum, Gr. and R. (Μουσεῖον). Literally, a temple of the Muses. The term was afterwards applied to an establishment founded by Ptolemy I., called Soter, at Alexandria in Egypt, in which scholars and literary men were maintained at the public expense. In a villa, it was a grotto or retreat to which people retired for meditation.
Fig. 475. Opus musivum.
Fig. 475. Opus musivum.
Fig. 475. Opus musivum.
Fig. 474. Opus musivum.
Fig. 474. Opus musivum.
Fig. 474. Opus musivum.
Musivum(opus), R. (μουσεῖον). This term was used by the Romans to denote a mosaic of small cubes of coloured glass or enamel, in contradistinction toLithostrotum(q.v.), which was a pavement made of real stones and marbles of different colours; but in a more extended sense, the term Musivum denotes any kind of mosaic. Figs. 474 and 475 show examples of various kinds. Fig.476is a mosaic forming a border.
Fig. 476. Opus musivum—bordering.
Fig. 476. Opus musivum—bordering.
Fig. 476. Opus musivum—bordering.
Muslin, originally esteemed for the beauty with which gold was woven in its warp, took its name from the city of Mousull in Turkey in Asia.
Musquet.A long heavy match-lock gun, introduced from Spain in the Dutch wars of the 16th century, which eventually displaced the harquebus. (SeeSnaphaunceandWheel-lock.)
Musquet-rest.A staff with a forked head required to support the musquet. It was trailed by a string from the wrist.
Mustarde Villars, O. E. Either (1) a kind of cloth, probably so named from Moustier de Villiers, near Harfleur; or else (2) (as Stowe says) “a colour, now out of use.”Mustardwas a favourite colour for liveries and official dresses in the 15th century.
Mutatio, R. Literally,change. The Romans gave the name ofmutationesto the posthouses for relays of horses established along the high roads for the service of the state.
Mutch, O. E. An old woman’s close cap. (Fairholt.)
Mute, Fr. This term, derived from the Latinmuta, is employed by ancient authors as a synonym forbelfry,turret, orbell-tower.
Mutule, Arch. In a general sense, any stone or wooden projection which stands out beyond the surface of a wall, such as a rafter, for instance. In a more restricted sense, it denotes an architectural ornament characteristic of the Doric order, consisting of a square block placed at equal intervals above the triglyphs and metopes in a Doric cornice. In the Corinthian ordermutulesare replaced by modillions.
Mynchery, A.S. A nunnery. The word survives in local dialects, and is applied to the ruins; e. g. of the ancientmyncheryat Littlemore, near Oxford.
Myrtle Crownfor bloodless victors. Themyrtlewas sacred to Venus. It flourished on the sea-coast of Italy and Greece. The wood is very hard, and is used for furniture, marquetry, and turning. Another myrtle wood from Van Diemen’s Land is beautifully veined for cabinet-work.
Myth, Gen. (μῦθος, lit. that which is spoken). The name given to obscure traditions handed down from remote antiquity, antecedent to written or precise history; opposed tolegendaryrecord (which can beread).