An Illustrated Dictionary of Words used in Art and Archaeology / Explaining terms frequently used in works on architecture, arms, bronzes, Christian art, colour, costume, decoration, devices, emblems, heraldry, lace, personal ornaments, pottery, painting, sculpture, &c., with their derivations.

by John W. Mollett

Lames, Fr. Flexible plates or blades of steel, worn over the hips.

Lametta. Brass, silver, or gold foil or wire.

Lamiæ, Gr. and R. Vampires who fed at night on the flesh of human beings. The Lamiæ of Pliny are animals with the face and head of a woman, and the tail of a serpent, inhabiting the deserts of Africa.

Laminated. Disposed in layers or plates.

Lammas, O. E. The 1st of August.

Fig. 415. Roman Lamp.

Lamp, Lantern, or Taper, in Christian art, was an emblem of piety; an attribute of St. Lucia. (See Lucerna, Lychnus, Lantern.)

Lampadephoria, Gr. (torch-bearing). A game common throughout Greece, in which the competitors raced, either on foot or horseback, six stadia (about three-quarters of a mile), carrying lamps prepared for the purpose. (See Lampas.)

Lampas, Gr. and R. A general term denoting anything which shines or affords light; a torch, a lamp, and especially a link. The word was frequently used for lampadephoria, the torch-race.