R.
Ra. The sun-god with hawk head is a common object of Egyptian pottery and architectural ornament, subsequent to the Asiatic invasions. It typifies the union of the yellow Asiatic and the native Egyptian races.
Rabato, Sp. A neck-band or ruff. (See Rebato.)
Rabbet (from rebated). In Joinery a groove in the edge of a board.
Rabyte, O. E. (for Arabyte). An Arab horse.
Racana, Chr. A blanket of hair-cloth prescribed for the couches of monks, &c., in summer.
“Pro anis rachinis propter æstus utantur.”
Rack, O. E. The last fleeting vestige of the highest clouds.
Racon, O. E. The pot-hook by which vessels are suspended over a fire. (See Galows.)
Radiant, Rayonée. Encircled with rays. (Fig. [395].)
Radius, R. A pointed rod employed by certain professors of astronomy and mathematics for tracing figures on the sand. Also the spoke of a wheel, a ray of light, and lastly, a stake used in constructing intrenchments (valla).
Radula, R. A scraper, an iron tool used for paring or scratching off.
Raffaelle-ware. A fine kind of Urbino majolica, the designs for which were probably furnished by pupils of the great master.
Rag. In Masonry, stone that breaks in jagged pieces.
Ragged Staff, Her. (See Ragulée.)
Ragman’s or Rageman’s Roll, O. E. (1) In History, a roll of the nobles of Scotland, who swore fealty to Edward I. at Berwick, in 1296; hence (2) a game of chance, in which a number of versified descriptions of character were drawn from a roll by the members of a company; 13th to 15th century. The game survives among children of the present age in the custom of drawing Twelfth-Night characters.
Ragstone. A rough kind of sandstone found in Kent.
Fig. 572. Ragulée.
Fig. 573. Bear and Ragged Staff.
Ragulée, Raguly, Her. Serrated. A “ragged staff,” or “staff ragulée,” is a part of a stem from which the branches have been cut off roughly. The illustration is the well-known device of the Earls of Warwick, originating with Arthgal, one of the Knights of the Round Table; because, says Leland, “this Arthgal took a bere in his arms, for that, in Britisch, soundeth a bere in Englisch.” (Fig. [573].)
Rahal, Arabic. A load for a camel; about 5 cwt.
Rains, or Raynes, Cloths (A. D. 1327–1434, &c.). Fine linen woven at Rennes in Brittany.
Rajeta, Sp. A coarse cloth of mixed colours.
Rallum, R. A piece of iron on the end of a stick, used to scrape off earth from the plough-share.
Fig. 574. Assyrian Battering-ram.
Ram, in Christian iconography, is a symbol not fully explained. It was probably connected with the idea of a manful fight with the powers of evil. Two rams face to face with a cross between them are a frequent symbol. (Consult Martigny, Dict. des Antiq. Chrét. s. v. Belier.)
Ram, O. E. for rain. (Shakspeare.)
Ram or Battering-ram. (See Aries.) The illustration (Fig. [574]) is from the Assyrian sculptures, showing the invention of the testudo to be of great antiquity.
Ramadhan. The ninth month of the Arabian calendar, and the Mohammedan month of fasting; it is followed by the festival of the Little Bairam.
Ramalia, R. (ramus, a ram) Roman festivals instituted in honour of Ariadne and Bacchus.
Ramillete, Sp. A nosegay; a pyramid of sweetmeats and fruits.
Fig. 575. Lion Rampant.
Fig. 576. Demi-lion Rampant.
Rampant, Her. Erect, one hind paw on the ground, the other three paws elevated; the animal looking forward, and having his tail elevated.
Rampant guardant, Her. The same as rampant, but looking out of the shield.
Rampant reguardant, Her. The same as rampant, but looking backwards.
Ranseur, Fr. A sort of partisan in use in the time of Edward IV., having a broad long blade in the centre, and projecting shorter blades on each side.
Rantle-tree, Scotch. (1) The beam in the chimney from which the crook is suspended, when there is no grate (Angl. Galows. See also Reeking-hook). (2) A tree chosen with two branches, which are cut short, and left in the shape of a Y, built into the gable of a cottage to support one end of the roof-tree.
Rapier, introduced from Spain in the 16th century, remained the favourite weapon of gentlemen. It is a light sword with a narrow blade adapted only for thrusting. It used to be called a tuck.
Rapier-dance. A theatrical dance still practised in Yorkshire, consisting of evolutions of the dancers with naked rapiers round a performer who kneels in the centre and finally simulates death. (Compare Sword-dance.)
Raploch, Scotch. Coarse undyed woollen cloth.
Rareca. Peruvian aqueducts; distinct from the subterranean aqueducts called Huircas or Pinchas (q.v.).
Rash. “A species of inferior silk, or silk and stuff manufacture.” (Nares.)
Raster, Rastrum, R. (rado, to scrape). A rake.
Rat. In Chinese symbolism, the month of November. (See Tchy Periods.)
Rath, Celtic. An ancient fortress or castle of the Irish chiefs, consisting of a circular intrenched enclosure, with buildings in the centre.
Rational, Heb. A square piece of richly embroidered cloth worn by the Jewish high priest upon the breast, above the ephod.
Ratis, R. A raft of strong beams or planks; and thence a flat boat, a bridge of boats, &c.
Raunle-tree. Scotch; for Rantle-tree (q.v.).
Raven, the ensign of the ancient Danes, was the bird of Odin. In Christian art, the emblem of Divine Providence (in allusion to the history of Elisha); attribute of certain saints, especially of ascetics. (See Crow.)
Ray, Chr. The fish (rina diaudan) which was burned by Tobias (vii. 2, 3), and the eggs of which are still burnt for intermittent fevers among the Greeks. (Harris, 408.)
Ray, O. E. (i. e. rayed). Striped cloth much worn in the 13th and 14th centuries.
Raynes, O. E. (from Rennes in Brittany). Fine linen.
“Cloth of raynes to sleep on soft.” (Chaucer.)
Rayonnée, Her. (See Radiant.)
Real (Eng. Royal). A Spanish coin. There are two kinds: a real of plate, worth 4¾d., and a real of vellon, worth 2½d. (Cf. Rial.)
Realgar. A red pigment, formed of arsenic in combination with sulphur. A fugitive and corrosive pigment. (See Merimée, De la Peinture à l’huile, p. 124.)
Realism, Realistic, in Art. (See Ideal and Real.)
Rebated. Turned back, as the head of a Morne or jousting-lance.
Rebato, Sp. The turn-down collar of the 15th and 16th centuries.
Rebec, Sp. A musical instrument of three strings, tuned in fifths, and played with a bow like a fiddle. It was originally introduced into Spain by the Moors.
Rebiting. A process of renewing the lines of a worn-out plate, by etching them over again; a difficult and delicate operation, which is rarely performed with entire success.
Fig. 577. Rebus (Prior Bolton). The Bolt and Tun.
Rebus, Her. An allusive charge or device. A ton or tun pierced by a bird-bolt is in the church of Great St. Bartholomew, of which Prior Bolton was the last prior.
“Prior Bolton
With his bolt and tun.”
(Ben Jonson.)
Recamo, Sp. Embroidery of raised work.
Recel, Sp. A kind of striped tapestry.
Receptorium, R. (recepto, to receive). A kind of parlour, also called salutatorium, which generally adjoined the ancient basilicas.
Fig. 578. Cross Recercelée.
Recercelée, Her. A variety of the heraldic cross.
Recheat, O. E. A sound on the horn to call dogs away from the chase.
Recinctus. Equivalent in meaning to Discinctus (q.v.).
Recorders. A musical instrument mentioned by Shakspeare. It resembled a very large clarionet. Milton also speaks of
“the Dorian mood
Of flutes and soft recorders.”
(Paradise Lost, i. 550.)
Recta, R. A straight tunic, made out of a single piece, which took the form of the body; it hung from the neck, and fell down as far as the feet.
Rectilinear figures are those composed entirely of straight or right lines.
Red. One of the three primary colours, producing with YELLOW, orange, and with BLUE, violet. The principal red pigments are carmine, vermilion, chrome red, scarlet lake, madder lake, light red, burnt sienna, for yellow reds; and Venetian red, Indian red, crimson lake, for blue reds. Red, in Christian art, represented by the ruby, signified fire, divine love, the Holy Spirit, heat or the creative power, and royalty. In a bad sense, red signified blood, war, hatred, and punishment. Red and black combined were the colours of purgatory and the devil. (See Realgar, Indigo.)
Red Chalk or Reddle is a mixture of clay and red iron OCHRE, used as a crayon in drawing. (See Ochre.)
Red Lake. (See Carmine.)
Red Lead. A pigment which mixes badly with other pigments. (See Minium.)
Red Ochre includes Indian red, scarlet ochre, Indian ochre, reddle, &c.
Red Orpiment. (See Realgar.)
Redan, the simplest kind of work in field fortification, generally consists of a parapet of earth, divided on the plan into two faces, which make with one another a salient angle, or one whose vertex is towards the enemy.
Reddle. (See Red Chalk.)
Redimiculum, R. (redimio, to bind round). A long string or ribbon attached to any kind of head-dress.
Redoubt is a general name for nearly every kind of work in the class of field fortifications.
Redshank, Scotch. A Highlander wearing buskins of red-deer skin, with the hair outwards.
Reduction. In Art, a copy on a smaller scale. The work is done mechanically by a process of subdivision of the original into segments or squares.
Reekie, Scotch. Smoky; hence Auld Reekie, the city of Edinburgh.
Reeking-hook, O. E. A pot-hook hung in the chimney, to suspend vessels over an open fire. (See Galows.)
Re-entering, in Engraving, is the sharpening or deepening with a graver the lines insufficiently bitten in by the acid.
Refectory, Mod. (reficio, to refresh). A hall in which the monks of a monastery assembled to take their meals; one of the most important rooms of the establishment; it was often divided into two naves by a row of columns called the spine (spina), which received the spring of the vaultings forming the roof of the refectory.
Reflected Lights thrown by an illuminated surface into the shadows opposed to it, modify the Local Colour of every object that we observe in nature, and should accordingly be made to do so in painting.
Reflexed, Reflected, Her. Curved and carried backwards.
Refraction is the diversion of a ray of light which occurs when it falls obliquely on the surface of a medium differing in density from that through which it had previously moved. The differently-coloured rays have different degrees of refrangibility. Refraction is the cause of the phenomena of the mirage, Fata Morgana, &c., and presents to us the light of the sun before his actual emergence above the horizon.
Fig. 579. Regals or Portable Organ.
Regal or Regals, O. E. (1) A small portable organ, with single or double sets of pipes (the attribute of St. Cecilia, and of saints and angels of the heavenly choir). The illustration (Fig. [579]) of an angel playing the regals, is taken from an ancient MS. (2) A kind of harmonica, with sonorous slabs of wood.
Fig. 580. Regalia. Grand Duke of Tuscany in state costume, with crown and sceptre, &c.
Regalia. The ensigns of royalty. The regalia of England are the crown, sceptre, verge or rod with the dove, St. Edward’s staff, the orb or mound, the sword of mercy called Curtana, the two swords of spiritual and temporal justice, the ring of alliance with the kingdom, the armillæ or bracelets, the spurs of chivalry, and some royal vestments; and are kept in the Jewel Office in the Tower of London. The Scottish insignia, a crown, a sceptre, and a sword of state, are kept in the Crown-room at Edinburgh. The illustration shows the regalia and state vestments of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, in the 16th century. (Fig. [580].)
Regifugium, R. (lit. flight of the king). An annual festival held on the sixth day of the calends of March (24th of February), in commemoration of the flight of Tarquin and the establishment of the Roman republic.
Regioles, Fr. Chr. Small doors in the confessio or martyrium of an altar, containing relics of a saint or martyr. The faithful used to introduce handkerchiefs by these doors, that they might consecrate them by contact with the relics.
Regrating or Skinning, in Masonry, is the process of scraping or hammering off the outer surface of old stones to make them look white and new; it has been greatly abused in the restoration of ancient buildings.
Reguardant, Her. Turning the head and looking back; emblematic of circumspection and prudence.
Regula, R. A straight rule used by artisans.
Regulares, Chr. Horizontal rods of wood or metal in churches for the suspension of veils or curtains. These were often made of gold or silver, with a row of images on the upper part.
Regulus (in Greek βασιλίσκος) is the name given by ancient astronomers to a line drawn from the polar star, between the pointers, &c., to the bright star called α Leonis or Cor Leonis (the lion’s heart).
Reindeer, Her. A hart with double antlers, one pair erect, the other drooping.
Reisner-work. A corrupt spelling of the name of Riesener, a celebrated worker in marquetry in France in the 18th century.
“Riesener used tulip, rosewood, holly, maple, laburnum, purple-wood, &c. Wreaths and bunches of flowers, exquisitely worked and boldly designed, form centres of his marquetry panels, which are often plain surfaces of one wood. On the sides, in borders and compartments, we find diaper patterns in three or four quiet colours.” (See Pollen, Ancient and Modern Furniture, &c.)
Relief (It. rilievo). Sculpture projecting—Alto-relievo, more than half; Mezzo-relievo, exactly half; Basso-relievo, less than half. (See also Rondo Bosso, Intaglio-Relievato, Stacciato.)
Reliquary, Chr. A portable shrine or casket made to contain relics. A reliquary made to be worn round the neck was called encolpium (ἐν κόλπῳ, in the bosom), phylacterium, &c.; one to be carried processionally, feretrum. (See Feretory, Fig. [307].)
Remarque, Fr. A slight sketch on the margin beneath an etching or engraving, to denote the earliest proof impressions.
Removed, Her. Out of its proper position.
Remuria, R. A Roman festival in honour of Remus, held on the third of the ides of May (13th of May) on the Palatine mount, on the spot where Remus had taken the auspices, and where he was buried.
Renaissance (lit. new-birth or revival). The term is popularly applied to the gradual return to classical principles in Art in the 13th and 14th centuries. The Italian renaissance, begun by Niccola Pisano in architecture and sculpture, and by Giotto in painting, was fostered by the Medici family, and culminated in Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael. Teutonic art (Flemish, German, and Dutch) had also their periods of revival. It is, however, impossible to indicate their representatives without entering upon debateable questions. Goldsmith’s work, pottery, and other useful arts passed through parallel periods of revival concurrent, or nearly so, with those in painting.
Rengue, Sp. A kind of gauze worn on official robes in Spain.
Reno and Rheno, R. A very short cloak, often made of skins, peculiar to the Gauls and Germans, and adopted by the Roman soldiery.
Repagula, R. (lit. fastening back). A double fastening to a door; of two bolts (pessuli), one of which was shot towards the right, and the other to the left.
Replica. A duplicate of a picture, done by the same painter.
Repose. (See Riposo.)
Repositorium, R. (repono, to lay down). A side-board for plates and dishes in a dining-room; it was divided into several stories, and formed a kind of dinner-wagon; and many examples were richly ornamented, and inlaid with variegated woods, or tortoise-shell and silver, &c.
Repoussé, Fr. Metal-work hammered out from behind into ornaments in relief.
Requiem, Chr. The Roman Missa pro Defunctis, or service for the dead, beginning with the anthem “Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine.”
Rerebrace, O. E. (for the French arrière bras). Armour for the upper part of the arm.
Rerebrake, O. E. A pommel at the back of a saddle to support the horseman under the shock of a tilting-bout. (See Meyrick, vol. ii. p. 137.)
Reredos, Chr. (1) The wall or screen at the back of an altar. In the primitive churches, in which the bishop’s seat was at the back of the altar, there was no reredos. Its introduction dates from the period (about the 12th century) when the episcopal seats and the choirs were established in front of the altars. (2) The Rood-screen was sometimes so called. (3) The open hearth was so called. Hollinshed relates that, before the invention of chimneys, “each man made his fire against a reredosse in the hall, where he dined and dressed his meat.”
Rere-supper (Fr. arrière souper). The last meal taken in the day; 15th century.
Resins. (See Amber, Copal, Damara, Mastic, &c.)
Ressaunt, O. E. Arch. An obsolete term applied to members of architecture inflected or curved like an Ogee moulding.
Rest. In Music, a character denoting silence for a length denoted by the character used to express the rest, i. e. semibreve, minim, crotchet, quaver, &c.
Restoration. In Architecture, a drawing of an ancient building in its original design.
Retable (Fr.), Chr. (See Reredos.)
Rete and Retis, R. A net.
Retiarius. A gladiator whose only arms were a trident and net; with the latter he tried to embarrass the adversary by casting it over his head, and, having done so, to wound him with the trident; failing in their throw, their only resource was to run round the arena preparing the net for a second attempt. They fought generally with the Mirmillones, and had no helmet nor other protective armour excepting for the left arm. (See Gladiators.)
Fig. 581. Venetian Reticella Lace.
Reticella (Lat. reticulus, a little net). This was the first known needle-made lace, produced in all lace-making countries under different names. (See Greek Lace.) It was made in several ways: the first consisted in arranging a network of threads on a small frame, crossing and interlacing them in various complicated patterns. Beneath this network was gummed a piece of fine cloth, open like canvas, called quintain (from the town in Brittany where it was made). Then with a needle the network was sewn to the quintain by edging round those parts of the pattern which were to remain thick, then cutting away the superfluous cloth: hence the name of cutwork in England. A more simple mode was to make the pattern detached without any linen; the threads radiating at equal distances from one common centre served as a framework to others, which were united to them in geometric forms worked over with button-hole stitch (or point noué). The engraving shows a fine specimen of reticella from Venice, 1493. (See also Milan Reticella.)
Reticulated. Latticed like the meshes of a net (rete).
Reticulated Glass. (See Glass.)
Fig. 582. Reticulated Vase. Japanese.
Reticulated Porcelain is an Oriental product, of which the outer side is entirely cut out in geometric patterns, honeycomb, circles intercrossed and superposed to a second vase of similar, or of simply cylindrical form. Fig. [582] is a specimen of this style.
Fig. 583. Reticulatum opus.
Reticulated Work, Arch. (Lat. reticulata structura, literally, made like a net). Masonry constructed with diamond-shaped stones, or Quarrels, shown in Figs. 493 and 583. The latter shows one of the mouths of the cloaca opening on the Tiber. Reticulata fenestra was a window grated over with bars of wood or metal crossing in the form of network.
Reticulum, R. Diminutive of rete, a net.
Retinaculum, R. (retineo, to hold back). A rope used to moor a vessel to the shore.
Retorted, Her. Intertwined.
Retro-choir, Chr. Arch. Chapels behind or about the choir.
Reverse. The back of a medal. In very ancient coins this had no mark except that of the instrument by which it was fixed to receive the stamp of the obverse. By degrees this grew into a figure of a dolphin or some other animal. Some ancient Greek reverses are intaglios of the stamp in relief of the obverse. Complete reverses appear on Greek coins about 500 B.C., and are of exquisite execution. (Cf. Obverse.)
Revinctum (opus), R. (revincio, to bind fast). Dove-tailed masonry. (See Fig. [269].)
Rhabdion (lit. a small rod). An instrument used in encaustic painting, with which the wax tints were blended. It was probably flat at one end, and kept heated in a small furnace close at hand. (See Eastlake, Materials, &c., i. 154.)
Rheda, R. A roomy four-wheeled carriage, of Gallic origin, with several seats. The driver was called Rhedarius.
Rheno, Gr. (ῥὴν, a sheep). A sheepskin cloak, covering the shoulders and as far as to the waist, worn by the ancient Germans as a protection against rain.
Rhingrave. The petticoat breeches worn in the reign of Charles II. (Planché.)
Rhomboid. “An equilateral oblique parallelogram.”
Rhomphæa, Romphæa, Rumpia, R. A sword with a long blade, used by the Thracians.
Fig. 584. Rhyton. Greek Drinking-cup.
Rhyton, Gr. and R. (ῥυτὸν, lit. flowing). A drinking-vessel of earthenware in the form of a horn or trumpet; in many instances with a handle.
Fig. 585. Rial. Queen Elizabeth.
Rial or Royal (Sp. real). A Spanish coin introduced into England in 16th cent. (See Real.)
Riband or Ribbon (Welsh rhibin; Irish ruibin, &c.). A long narrow web of silk worn for ornament or use; especially for a badge of devotion in love or war.
“See in the lists they wait the trumpet’s sound:
Some love-device is wrought on every sword,
And every ribbon bears some mystic word.”
(Granville.)
The Ribbons of the various orders of Knighthood are:—of the Garter, a broad dark blue ribbon passing over the left shoulder; of the Thistle, a broad dark green ribbon; of St. Patrick, a light blue; of the Bath, red; of the Star of India, pale blue with white borders.
Ribbon, Riband, Her. A diminutive of a Bend.
Ribibe. A kind of fiddle; 15th century.
Ribs, Arch. Projecting bands on ceilings, &c.
Rica, R. A square piece of cloth with a fringe, worn by priests and women on the head, and especially by the former when they were offering a sacrifice; ricula was a smaller veil worn in the same fashion. (Cf. Flammeum.)
Rice-paper. A delicate vegetable film brought from China, and used as a substitute for drawing-paper in the representation of richly-coloured insects or flowers, &c.
Ridels. French word for bed-curtains; 15th century.
Rimenato, It. (See Crusca.)
Ring Mail. Flexible armour of iron rings interwoven; introduced from the East by the Crusaders.
Fig. 586. Ring of chiselled iron. French. 16th century.
Fig. 587. Venetian Ring. 16th century.
Rings. The symbolic use of signet-rings is mentioned in many passages of the Holy Scriptures, especially as a transfer of authority; as Pharaoh to Joseph (Gen. xli. 42), Ahasuerus to Haman, &c. A large collection of Egyptian signet-rings is in the British Museum, many being much too large to be worn on the hand. Egyptian rings were of ivory, porcelain, or stone, but generally of gold. The Etruscans and Sabines wore rings at the foundation of Rome, 753 B.C., those of the former being remarkable for beauty and intrinsic value. The Lacedæmonians wore iron rings. The Romans also under the Republic were proud of wearing an iron ring; under the Empire the privilege of wearing a ring raised the wearer to the equestrian order. Greek and Roman rings were, generally speaking, massive and simple, and of obvious value in metal and stone, until in the degenerate times of the Empire luxury spread, and the lower classes began to disfigure themselves with cheap jewellery. Solid rings were carved out of rock-crystal in Christian times; and others were made of stone, chiefly of calcedony. Rings of amber, glass, earthenware, and other materials were exhumed at Pompeii. The Britons and Saxons had beautiful jewellery. The former wore the ring on the middle finger; the Anglo-Saxons on the third finger of the right hand, which was thence poetically called the “golden finger.” A beautiful specimen of enamelled art is the gold ring of Ethelwulf, king of Wessex (the father of Alfred the Great), now in the medal room of the British Museum. Among the niello rings of the Saxon period is one in the British Museum inscribed “Ahlreds owns me, Eanred engraved me.” Plain wire rings, or plain bands of metal merely twisted round the finger, are common objects in Saxon tombs; but the most beautiful specimens of this, as of other branches of the goldsmith’s art in antiquity, are from Ireland. In Scandinavia the earliest forms are spiral, and of simple workmanship. Rings were a part of the official jewellery of kings, bishops, and cardinals; and the fisherman’s ring, with a representation of St. Peter in a boat fishing, was the papal ring of investiture. A copious literature on this special subject deals with the superstitions, ceremonies, customs, and anecdotes connected with finger-rings, as well as with their exemplification of the history of the development or decadence of art. A collector divides his rings into Antique, Mediæval, and Modern; the former period ending A. D. 800, and classified by nationalities. The later collections are classified as Official: ecclesiastical, civil, and military; or Personal, viz. signet-rings, love and marriage, mourning, &c.; historical, religious (i. e. devotional, &c.), magic, and simply ornamental. (The substance of the above is drawn from Finger-ring Lore, &c., by W. Jones, Chatto, 1877; and Antique Gems, by the Rev. C. W. King. For the significance of rings in connexion with the history of Christianity, see Smith and Cheetham, Dict. of Christ. Ant. s. v.)
Rinman’s Green. (See Cobalt.)
Rip-rap, Arch. A builder’s term for a foundation of loose stones.
Riposo, It. The rest of the Holy Family during the Flight into Egypt is often shortly designated the Riposo; it is treated by different masters in a great variety of styles.
Riscus, R. (ῥίσκος). A wardrobe or chest for clothes.
Rising, Roussant, Her. Said of birds about to take wing.
Rivers, Chr. The four rivers of Paradise are variously represented in primitive Christian art; e. g. the Lamb standing on a mountain, from which they flow; or they are personified, and symbolize the four Evangelists: the Gihon is St. Matthew; Pison, St. John; Tigris, St. Mark; and Euphrates, St. Luke. The following lines in one instance accompany such a representation on an engraved copper plate:—
“Fons paradisiacus per flumina quatuor exit;
Hec quadriga levis te Χρε per omnia vexit.”
In CLASSIC art generally, rivers are personified as half-prostrate figures reclining upon an urn, and marked by certain attributes; e. g. of the Nile, a hippopotamus; of the Tiber, a wolf suckling Romulus and Remus; other rivers by the flora or by certain cities of their banks, &c. (Consult Didron, Iconographie Chrét.; Martigny, &c.)
Roan. (1) A kind of leather much used for bookbinding; it is of sheepskins tanned with sumach. (2) Said of a bay or sorel horse marked with grey.
Robigalia, R. Roman festivals held every year on the sixth of the calends of May (25th of April), in honour of the god Robigus, to preserve the wheat from mildew.
Roborarium (robur, strength). An enclosure within a wooden palisade.
Fig. 588. Robur. Prison at Rome.
Robur, R. The subterranean dungeon of a prison (carcer), in which criminals were executed. In Fig. [588] the character of the robur is clearly seen; it is that of the prison of Ancus Martius and Servius Tullius at Rome, of which some ruins still remain.
Rochet, Chr. (Lat. rochetum; Anglo-Saxon roc, a loose upper garment). A short surplice without sleeves, open at the sides; imitated from a linen outer garment of the same name, much worn by women in the 14th century. Chaucer says,—
“There is no clothe sytteth bette
On damoselle than doth rokette.”
Rock-crystal. A material much used for carving in China. Fortune says, “Fine specimens of rock-crystal, carved into figures, cups, and vases, are met with in the curiosity shops of Foo-chow-foo. Some of these specimens are white, others golden yellow, and others again blue and black. One kind looks as if human hair was thrown in and crystallized. Imitations of this stone are common in Canton, made into snuff-bottles, such as are commonly used by the Chinese.” The Greek name (κρύσταλλος, ice) refers to the belief that it was frozen water; the Indians believe it to be the husk of which the diamond is the kernel, and call it the unripe diamond; in Japan it is cut into round balls used for cooling the hands; in China also it is extensively carved; in the Middle Ages it was highly valued throughout Europe as a detector of poison. Still more recently crystal balls have been supposed to have magical influence, and used for divination and conjuring.
Rockets, O. E. Slabs of wood used on lances, during exercise, for the same purpose as the buttons of foils.
Rococo, It. The style of decoration into which that of the Louis Quinze period culminated, distinguished for a superfluity of confused and discordant detail. (See Louis XV.)
Rod. In measurement, 16½ feet linear, or 272½ square feet.
Rodomel, O. E. The juice of roses, mixed with honey.
Rogus, R. A funeral pile when in process of burning, in contradistinction to Pyra (q.v.).
Rokelay, O. E. A short cloak.
Roll-moulding (Arch.), profusely used in the Early English and Decorated styles, is a round moulding, divided longitudinally along the middle, the upper half of which projects over the lower. Roll and fillet moulding is a roll-moulding with a square fillet on the face of it.
Rolls of Arms. Heraldic records of ancient armorial insignia, preserved on strips of parchment. The earliest known are of the 13th century. (Consult Boutell.)
Romal, Hind. A silk fabric, of which cotton imitations are made in England.
Fig. 589. Temple of Vesta at Tivoli, with Roman-Corinthian columns.
Roman Architecture is a combination of the Etruscan and the Greek, principally distinguished from the latter by the circular arch, and the monopteral or circular temple unknown to the Greeks, but a favourite form with the tomb-building ancestors of the Etruscans. The orders of Roman architecture were the Doric and Ionic, detrimentally modified; the Corinthian, which they greatly enriched; and the Composite, of which the upper part of the capital was Ionic, and the remainder Corinthian. The distinguishing feature of the Roman architecture is, however, less in the modifications of the orders, than in their application in composite arcades, or plain arches of Etruscan design, faced by and supporting a purely ornamental arrangement of a long horizontal entablature on two columns. (Consult Fergusson, Hist. of Arch., vol. i.)
Roman Doric Order of Architecture. A deteriorated imitation of the Grecian Doric, adopted, with considerable modifications, by modern Italian architects.
Roman Ochre or Italian Earth. A pigment of a rich orange yellow, used both raw and burnt in oil and water-colours. (See Ochre.)
Roman Sepia is sepia (q.v.) mixed with red.
Romanesque. A degenerated and hybrid style of architecture and ornament, transitional from the classical Roman to the introduction of the Gothic. In the architecture there is an incongruous combination of the horizontal and arched methods of construction; and in the ornament a similar dissonance of natural and conventional or fanciful objects. Fairholt calls it the classic rococo. Fergusson (Hist. of Arch., vol. i. p. 352) defines the Romanesque as “that modification of the classical Roman form, which was introduced between the reigns of Constantine and Justinian, and was avowedly an attempt to adapt classical forms to Christian purposes.” He says, “If Romanesque is to be applied to our Norman architecture, the Parthenon ought to be called Egyptianesque, and the Temple at Ephesus Assyrianesque.” There seems to be no universally-received definition of this term.
Rondache, Fr. A round shield for foot-soldiers. It had a slit near the top to look through, and another at the side for the sword.
Ronde Bosse (It. rondo bosso). Sculpture in relief with a complete rounded outline, detached from the ground.
Rood, Chr. (1) A cross or crucifix. (2) A space of 1210 square yards; the fourth of an acre. (3) In building, 36 square yards of work. (4) As a linear measure variable, from 21 feet to 36 yards.
Rood-beam, Chr. The beam across the church by which the rood was supported when there was no rood-loft.
Rood-cloth, Chr. The veil by which the large crucifix or rood was hidden during Lent.
Rood-loft, Rood-screen, Chr. A gallery, generally placed over the chancel screen in parish churches, in which the cross or rood was set to view.
Rood-tower, Rood-steeple, Chr. Arch. A tower or steeple of a cruciform church, built above the intersection, i. e. immediately over the rood.
Roquelaure. “A short abridgment or compendium of a cloak, which is dedicated to the Duke of Roquelaure.”
Rorarii, R. (ros, the dew). A body of light skirmishers in the Roman army, who were ranged in the second rank of the triarii, with the accensi behind them in the third line. They took their name from the light missiles which they scattered upon the enemy, which were like the drops of rain before a thunder shower. It was their business to begin the attack, and retire behind the triarii when pressed. Their skirmishing was a prelude to the charge of the heavy-armed spears (hastati).
Rosary, Chr. A string or chaplet of beads for numbering prayers, an Oriental and ante-Christian custom of great antiquity. They are called tasbih by the Indian Mohammedans; in Sanscrit Japanata, “the muttering chaplet,” &c.
Fig. 590. Heraldic Roses.
Rose, Her. Represented in blazon without leaves. The rose of England is generally drawn like the natural flower, or with natural stem, branches, leaves, and buds, but with heraldic rose-flowers. (See Fig. [395].) In Classic art, a rose upon a tomb is an emblem of a short life. The ancient Romans were passionately fond of roses, and cultivated them assiduously in their gardens, and introduced them plentifully in their feasts and symposia. In mediæval England roses were the favourite presents on birthdays; and Whitsuntide was called, from the plenty of them, Rose Easter. Sticking a rose in the ear was the boast of an accepted lover.
“That in mine ear I durst not stick a rose,
Lest men should say, Look where three farthings goes.”
(Shakspeare.)
The allusion refers to a thin silver coin of the reign of Elizabeth, called the three-farthing rose. (Planché.)
Rose-engine Pattern (Fr. guillochis). (1) An architectural moulding, also called Greek fret, meanders, and quirked torus. (2) In goldsmiths’ work it is an ornament of network made by means of a machine called a rose-engine. (Bosc.)
Rose Lake, Rose Madder. A rich tint prepared from lac and madder. (See Madder.)
Rose Pink. A coarse kind of lake; a delicate and fugitive colour. (See Pinks.)
Rose-quartz. A massive quartz of a rose-red colour, common in Ceylon.
Fig. 591. Rose-window in the Church of St. Croix, Orleans.
Rose-window (sometimes called a Catherine wheel), Arch. A large circular window divided into compartments by curved mullions. The most beautiful examples are met with in churches of the Florid Gothic period. (Fig. [591].)
Rose-wood, Rhodes-wood, largely used in furniture as a favourite veneer, is a name applied to a large variety of trees, mostly imported from Brazil.
Rosemary, in Old England, was closely connected with wedding-feasts and with funerals.
“There’s rosemary: that’s for remembrance; pray you, love, remember: and there is pansies; that’s for thoughts.”
(Hamlet.)
“There’s Rosemarie; the Arabians justifie,
It comforteth the braine and memorie.”
(A Dialogue between Nature and the Phœnix,
by R. Chester, 1601.)
Rosetta-wood. A beautifully-veined East Indian wood, of a bright red orange colour.
Rosettes. (See Ribands.)
Rosins. (See Resins.)
Rosso Antico, It. Ancient marble of a deep red tint, probably deepened in colour by antiquity, like the Nero Antico (q.v.). It is the material of many ancient Egyptian and early Greek sculptures, unequalled in tone by the products of any modern quarries. It contains white spots and veins.
Rostrum, R. (Gr. Embolos). The prow of a ship. The plural rostra was used to denote a tribune in the Roman forum, from which orators addressed the people; it was so called because it was decorated with the figure-heads of the ships taken from the Volscians in the Latin War.
Rota, R. (1) A wheel composed of a nave (modius), spokes (radii), felloes (absides), and iron tires (orbes or canthi ferrarii). (2) It was also an instrument of punishment. Rota aquaria was a hydraulic wheel; rota figularis, a potter’s wheel.
Rotta (Germ. rotte; Eng. rote), a stringed instrument of the early Middle Ages, sounded either as a harp or a fiddle.
Rotunda. A dome-shaped or monopteral (q.v.) structure. The largest rotunda ever made was that of the Vienna Exhibition in 1873.
Fig. 592. Gallic coin.
Rouelle, Fr. (lit. a small wheel). A French term which has been applied by antiquaries to numerous objects more or less resembling a wheel, such as brooches and coins. The Gallic coin (Fig. [592]) is from the bas-reliefs on a Roman arch at Orange.
Fig. 593. Rouen Plate. Decorated à la Corne.
Rouennais Faience. This style, of strongly Oriental character, and mostly applied to the decoration of what are called “lambrequins” (or mantlings) and “dentelles” (lace), has been the object of universal imitation in France and other countries. Figs. 593 and 594 are representative specimens remarkable for great originality.
Fig. 594. Slipper in Rouen Faience.
Rouge Croix, Rouge Dragon. Two of the four Pursuivants (heralds of the lowest type) of Herald’s College.
Rouge Royal, Arch. A kind of red marble.
Round Towers. There are upwards of a hundred in Ireland, of which about twenty are perfect. Generally the tower is a hollow circular column from 50 to 150 feet high, capped by a short pointed roof of stone. The base, frequently of cyclopean masonry, measures from 40 to 60 feet in circumference, and the form of the whole tower is tapering towards the summit. The single entrance door is always from 8 to 15 feet above the ground; the windows, scattered, light the internal stories or rooms. Innumerable and wild conjectures of the origin and purpose of these towers have been made. The most sober appears to be that they were the earliest form of buildings of a monastic order, adapted to the exigencies of a Christian settlement in the midst of pagans and pirates. (See Petrie, The Round Towers of Ireland.)
Fig. 595. Bezant.
Roundels. (1) Wooden platters decorated with painting and gilding; 16th century. (2) Small round shields borne by soldiers in the 14th and 15th centuries. (3) Arch. The bead or astragal moulding.
Roundle, Her. A circular figure in Heraldry, of which there are many kinds: as the Bezant, Plate, Torteau, &c. (q.v.). In modern Heraldry a roundle gules is called Torteau; azure, Hurt; sable, Pellet or Ogress; vert, Pomme; purpure, Golpe. (See also Fountain, Annulet.)
Roussant, Her. About to fly.
Rowan-tree, Scotch. The mountain ash.
Rowel. The wheel of a spur.
Rowel Lights, Chr. Lights in a church, let up and down by a pulley, especially a star-like light made to move at the Epiphany, when the coming of the wise men was acted as a religious play. Any small hoop or ring movable on the place that holds it is a “rowel.”
Rowell or Ricel, O. E. A vessel mentioned, but not described, in Church records (of Walberswick, Suffolk), to be used twice in the year; “whereby, and the great quantity of Wax and Frankincense, a ceremonial Imitation of the Birth and Burial of our Saviour seems to have been celebrated.” (Gardner, T., Historical Account.)
Royal. (1) Paper: 21 inches by 19. (2) Artillery. A very small mortar. (3) Sailing. The upper sail above the top-gallant. (4) O. E. A Rial (q.v.), a coin of the value of ten shillings.
Royal Blue (Fr. bleu du roi). A vitreous pigment used in porcelain painting, resulting in a rich, deep blue colour. It is prepared from smalt.
Rubelite. A precious stone not much used for jewellery. It is a species of tourmaline, red and pink in colour.
Rubens Brown. A rich brown pigment.
Rubiate. A name for Liquid Madder Lake (q.v.).
Rubicelle. An orange-coloured stone, a variety of the spinel ruby.
Rubrica, R. Red ochre; and thence rubric, an edict or ordinance of the Civil Law written in red ochre, while the ordinances and rules of the prætors were written in black on a white ground on the Album (q.v.).
Ruby, in Christian art. (See Red.)
Ruby or Red Sapphire. A corundum, the most valuable of all gems; when perfect and large, exceeding even the diamond in value. The colour varies from the lightest rose tint to the deepest carmine. The most valuable tint is called “pigeon’s blood,” a pure deep rich red, without any admixture of blue or yellow. Brahmin traditions speak of the abode of the gods lighted by enormous rubies; and one name of the Kings of Pegu was “Lord of Rubies.” In mediæval times the ruby was regarded as an amulet against poison, plague, sadness, evil thoughts, wicked spirits, &c. It also kept the wearer in health, and cheered his mind, and blackened when he incurred danger. (Consult Emanuel, Diamonds and Precious Stones, &c.)
Rudder. On ancient coins, &c., with the orb and fasces, emblem of the supreme power.
Rudens, R. The smaller ropes in a ship.
Rudiarii. Veteran gladiators discharged from the service by the presentation of a wooden sword (rudis).
Rudis, R. (1) A spoon or similar instrument. (2) A wooden sword. (See Rudiarii.) When a gladiator received his discharge, a rudis was given him, together with a freedman’s cap, by way of declaration that he had been granted his liberty, a fact expressed by the phrase rude donari.
Rue, Her. A chaplet of rue is blazoned bend-wise (see Per Bend) across the shield of Saxony. (See Crancelin.)
Ruffles. Lace frills worn over the wrists, introduced temp. Henry VIII.
Ruff and Honours. An ancient game of cards from which Whist is derived.
Fig. 596. Silesian Maiden with Ruff.
Ruffs. Large collars of lace or muslin. A fashion of the 16th century; it commenced at the end of the reign of Henry VIII. Cambrics and lawn for making ruffs were first imported under Elizabeth. For illustrations of various modifications of this fashion, see Figs. 267, 283, 304, 559, 561, 580, &c. (Consult Planché, Cycl. of Costume.)
Rugæ, Chr. The metal cancelli or screens of the more sacred parts of a church. The presbytery of St. Peter’s was fenced in with silver “rugæ,” and the confessional with rugæ of gold. (See Smith and Cheetham.)
Rullions, Scotch. Shoes made of untanned leather.
Rum-swizzle. “The name given in Dublin to a fabric made from undyed foreign wool, which, while preserving its natural property of resisting wet, possesses the qualities of common cloth.” (Simmonds’ Commercial Dict.)
Rumex, R. A weapon of similar character to the Sparum, the head of which was formed like a spear with a hook on the blade.
Runcina, R. A carpenter’s tool of the nature of a plane.
Runco, R. A hoe.
Runes, Scand. Magical inscriptions in a character believed by the northern nations to have been invented by Woden. “The Runic alphabet,” says Mr. Wheaton, “consists properly of sixteen letters, which are Phœnician in their origin.... They are only Roman, with the curves changed into straight lines for the convenience of engraving on hard substances.” (Hist. of the Northmen, p. 61.)
Ruskie, Scotch. A coarse straw hat; a basket or beehive of plaited osiers or straw.
Russells, O. E. A kind of satin.
Russet. A red grey colour; violet mixed with orange. Its complementary is green grey.
Rust (oxide) of iron. “The best rust” is mentioned in a list of colours of the 17th century. (Brown, Ars Pictoria, Appendix, p. 5.)
Fig. 597. Rustic Work. Bossage.
Rustic Work (Fr. bossage). Ashlar masonry, the joints of which are worked with grooves or channels to render them conspicuous; sometimes the whole of the joints are worked in this way, and sometimes only the horizontal ones. (See Fig. [597].)
Rustre, Her. A Lozenge pierced with a circular opening.
Rustred Armour seems to have grown out of the ring armour. It consisted of one row of flat rings about double the usual size, laid half over the other, so that two in the outer partly covered one.