Chapter M (9)

=Tunica=, Gr. and R. A tunic; the principal garment worn both by men and women among the Greeks and Romans. It was a kind of woollen shirt confined round the neck and the waist; it came down as far as the knee; it had short sleeves which only covered the upper part of the arm. Tunics were classed as follows: the _exomis_, the _epomis_, the _chiton_, the _manicata_ or _manuleata_, the _talaris_, the _muliebris_, the _interior_ or _intima_, the _recta_, the _angusticlavia_, the _laticlavia_, the _patagiata_, the _palmata_, the _asema_, and the _picta_. (_Bosc._) (Fig. 670.)

=Tunicatus=, Gr. and R. Wearing a tunic.

=Tunicle=, Chr. (Lat. _subtile_). The vestment of the sub-deacon; it resembled the dalmatic, but had tight sleeves.

=Turbo=, R. (Gr. βέμβιξ). A child’s whipping-top; the whorl of a spindle.

=Turibulum.= (See THURIBLE.)

=Turicremus.= (See THURICREMUS.)

=Turkey Carpets= are made entirely of wool, the loops being larger than those of Brussels carpeting, and always cut; the cutting of the yarn gives the surface the appearance of velvet.

=Turkey-stitch= (_point de Turquie_). A kind of carpet made at the Savonnerie, established 1627.

=Turma=, R. A squadron of legionary cavalry; it consisted of thirty-two men commanded by a decurion, and led under a _vexillum_.

=Turnbull’s Blue.= A light and delicate variety of _Prussian blue_.

=Turner’s Yellow.= An oxychloride of lead, known also as _patent yellow_, and _Cassell yellow_.

=Turquoise.= A valuable blue gem for ornamental purposes. (_S._) Fossil ivory impregnated with copper. (_F._)

=Turrets=, Arch. (Fr. _tourette_, a small tower). Towers of great height in proportion to their diameter, and large pinnacles, are called turrets; these often contain staircases, and are sometimes crowned with small spires. Large towers often have turrets at their corners.

=Turricula=, R. (dimin. of _turris_). A small tower; also, a dice-box in the form of a tower, to which the Greeks applied the term of _pyrgus_ (πύργος). _Turricula_ has a synonym FRITILLUS (q.v.).

=Turriger=, R. Bearing a tower; the term applies both to an elephant and a ship of war when thus armed.

=Turris=, =Tower=. In a general sense, any building or collection of buildings either lofty in themselves or built upon an elevation, and thence, fortifications, such as a tower of defence, the tower of a city gate or a castle, a DONJON (q.v.).

=Tus= or =Thus=, R. Frankincense, imported from Arabia and used in great quantities by the ancients either for religious ceremonies or to perfume their apartments.

=Tuscan Order of Architecture.= The simplest of the five ORDERS of classical architecture, having no ornament whatever; unknown to the Greeks; a variety of ROMAN DORIC (q.v.). The _column_ is about seven diameters high, including the base and capital. The _base_ is half a diameter in height; the _capital_ is of equal height, having a square _abacus_, with a small projecting fillet on the upper edge—under the abacus is an ovolo and a fillet with neck below; the _shaft_ is never fluted; the _entablature_ is quite plain, having neither _mutules_ nor _modillions_; the _frieze_ also is quite plain.

=Tusses= or =Toothing-stones=, in building, are projecting stones for joining other buildings upon.

=Tutulatus=, R. Having the hair arranged in the form of a cone, or wearing the sacerdotal cap called _tutulus_, and thence a priest who usually wore the TUTULUS (q.v.).

=Tutulus= or =Apex=, R. (1) A flamen’s cap; it was conical and almost pointed. (2) A mode of arranging the hair on the crown of the head in the shape of a pyramid or cone. An example is seen in the Medicean Venus.

=Twill.= A kind of ribbed cloth.

=Tympanium=, R. (τυμπάνιον). A pearl shaped like a kettle-drum, namely, with one surface flat and the other round.

=Tympanum=, R. (τύμπανον). (1) A tambourine, like that of modern times: a piece of stiff parchment stretched over a hoop with bells. (2) A drum-shaped wheel; _tympanum dentatum_, a cogged wheel. (3) In architecture, the flat surface, whether triangular or round, marked out by the mouldings of a pediment. Fig. 671 shows a tympanum of the Romano-Byzantine period. (For TRIANGULAR PEDIMENT, see Fig. 26.)

=Tynes=, Scotch. (1) Branches of a stag’s antlers. (2) Teeth of a harrow.

=Tyrian Purple.= An ancient dye of a brilliant colour, obtained from shells of the _murex_ and _purpura_.

U.

=U.= The letter repeated so as to mark the feathering upon tails of birds, is a peculiarity of Sicilian silks.

=Udo=, R. A sock made of goat-skin, or felt.

=Ulna=, R. A measure of length, subdivision of the foot measure.

=Ultramarine= or =Lapis Lazuli= (_azurrum transmarinum_). A beautiful blue pigment obtained from lazulite, highly esteemed by early painters. In consequence of the costliness of this pigment its use in a picture was regulated by special contract, and it was either supplied or paid for by the person who ordered the picture. Lely has recorded that he paid for his as much as 4_l._ 10_s._ the ounce. The pigment is now artificially compounded. (Cf. GUIMET’S U.)

=Umbella=, =Umbraculum=, R. (_umbra_, shade). An umbrella, made to open and shut like those of modern times. It is represented on vases held by a female slave over the head of her mistress. (See also UMBRELLAS.)

=Umber.= A massive mineral pigment used by painters as a brown colour, and to make varnish dry quickly. _Raw umber_ is of an olive brown, which becomes much redder when _burnt_. (See OCHRES.)

=Umbilici=, R. (lit. _navels_), were the ornamental bosses which projected from each end of the staff round which a volume of papyrus or parchment (_liber_) was rolled. They were also called _cornua_, and _geminæ frontes_. (See LIBER.)

=Umbo= (Gr. ὀμφαλός). (1) The boss of a shield, often sharp and projecting so as to form an offensive weapon in itself. (2) A bunch formed by the folds of the toga tacked in to the belt across the chest.

=Umbræ=, R. The shades of the departed; represented in the forms in which they abandoned life. Those killed in battle, _mutilated_, &c.

=Umbrellas.= ANGLO-SAXON manuscripts sometimes represent a servant holding an umbrella over the head of his master. In the sculptures of ancient EGYPT and ASSYRIA they are represented borne by the attendants on a king. The GREEK and ROMAN ladies used parasols in all respects resembling those of modern times. In the PANATHENAIC procession the daughters of foreign settlers in Athens had to carry parasols over the heads of the Athenian maidens taking part in the procession. They were substituted later on by broad hats, the Roman PETASUS and the Greek THOLIA. In the SIAMESE empire an umbrella is the emblem of the royal dignity.

=Umbrere=, =Umbril=. In mediæval armour, a projection on a helmet acting as a guard to the eyes.

=Umbril.= (See UMBRERE.)

=Uncia= (Gr. οὐγκία, _Angl._ ounce). The _unit_ of measurement. The twelfth part of anything. In currency, a copper coin; the twelfth part of an As. Its value was expressed on the obverse and reverse by _one_ ball; in lineal measurement, the twelfth of a foot, whence our _inch_; in square measure, the twelfth of a _jugerum_; of liquids, the twelfth of a _sextarius_; in weight, the twelfth of a pound (_libra_).

=Uncial Letters.= When writing on papyrus or vellum became common, many of the straight lines of the capitals, in that kind of writing, gradually acquired a _curved_ form. From the 6th to the 8th, or even 10th century, these _uncials_, or partly rounded capitals, prevail in illuminated MSS. (See also MINUSCULE, SEMI-UNCIALS.)

=Uncus=, R. (ὄγκος). A hook such as (1) that with which the corpses of gladiators were dragged out of the arena; or those of criminals from the carnificina where they were executed. (2) The fluke of an anchor, &c.

=Under-croft=, Arch. A subterranean chamber.

=Undulated=, Arch. (_unda_, a wave). Moulded or sculptured in the form of a _wave_; as for instance the _undulated torus_. (See NEBULE.) (Fig. 673.)

=Undy=, =Undée=, Her. Wavy.

=Unguentaria=, R. Flasks or boxes of costly workmanship for holding perfumes, essences, oils, and salves, for use in the baths, &c. (See NARTHECIA.)

=Unicorn.= In Christian art a symbol of purity, especially of female chastity. Attribute of St. Justina of Antioch. In Heraldry it is famous as the sinister supporter of the Royal Shield of England. The legend was that its body took the form of a horse and antelope, and it had one horn on its head. It was believed to live solitary in the woods, and could only be caught by a maiden. The property of detecting poison was attributed to its horn, and Hentzner, who visited England in 1598, says:—

“We were shown at Windsor the horn of an Unicorn, of about eight spans
and a half in length, valued at above 100_l._”

It is frequently mentioned in ancient inventories:—

“1391. Une manche d’or d’un essay de lincourne pour attoucher aux
viandes de Monseigneur le Dauphin.” _Comptes Royaux_, quoted by Mrs.
Bury Palliser.

In allusion to this property, Alviano, the champion of the Orsini family, adopted as his device a unicorn at a fountain surrounded by snakes, toads, and other reptiles, and stirring up the water with its horn before he drinks, with the motto, “I expel poisons.”

=Union Cloths.= Fabrics of wool with wefts of cotton.

=Union Jack.= The National Ensign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain—exhibiting the Union of the crosses of St. George and St. Andrew combined—first displayed in the reign of James I., 1606. The flag as it is now used, dates from the beginning of this century. It is borne on a shield, charged in pretence upon the escutcheon of the Duke of Wellington.

=Upapitha=, Hind. The pedestal of the Hindoo orders, which included, besides the pedestal properly so called, the base (_athisthama_), the pillar or shaft (_stambu_) which was either square or polygonal and only rounded at the upper part near the capital or _cushion_ which took its place, and lastly the entablature (_prastura_).

=Uræus=, Egyp. A transcription of the Egyptian word _ârâ_ or the asp _hajé_, a kind of serpent called by the Greeks _basilicon_ (βασιλικόν). The _uræus_ as an emblem of the sovereign power forms the distinctive ornament in the head-dress of the Egyptian kings.

=Urbino Ware=, made at Urbino, under the patronage of its Duke. “A city,” says Jacquemart, “which has supplied potters and painters to the greater part of the workshops of Italy; which has sent ceramic colonies to Flanders and Corfu, and yet we are scarcely acquainted with its works, except those of its decline.” (Fig. 676.) (See MAJOLICA.)

=Urceolated= (Basket), Arch. The corbel of the capital which narrows a little underneath its upper part.

=Urceolus.= Diminutive of URCEUS (q.v.).

=Urceus=, R. An earthenware pitcher used in religious ceremonies; represented on coins in the form of a modern ewer.

=Uriant=, Her. Said of a fish when it swims in a vertical position; head downwards. (Cf. HAURIANT.)

=Urn.= The common urn, the κάλπις of the Greeks, had a narrow neck and swelling body; it was used for conveying water from the fountain. The funereal cinerary urn was in general quadrangular, but there were a large number which resembled the _kalpis_, with the exception that they had a wider neck and were furnished in every case with a lid. Fig. 677 represents a funeral urn of Indian pottery, of very ancient date. The electoral urn, from which lots were drawn at the comitia to decide the order of voting, was of an oval form and had a narrow neck to prevent the possibility of more than one number being drawn out at a time. An urn is always introduced as an appropriate emblem of the river-gods. The _urna_ was a measure of capacity containing eight _congii_ or half an AMPHORA.

=Urnarium=, R. A square table or hollow slab on which _urnæ_ or earthenware vessels were placed.

=Ustrina=, =Ustrinum=, R. (_uro_, to burn). A public place for burning the bodies of the dead, in contradistinction to BUSTUM, a private place of cremation, situated within the sepulchral enclosure. It was in the public ustrina that the bodies of people of moderate means as well as the poor were burned.

=Uter=, R. A wine-skin or large leathern bag made of goat-skin, pig-skin, or ox-hide, and used for holding wine or other liquids. _Uter unctus_ was a goat-skin inflated with air and thoroughly greased on the outside. The peasants of Greece were fond of dancing and leaping upon these wine-skins, which it was extremely difficult to do without frequent falls. This was a very popular rustic game, and formed a principal feature of the second day of the festival of Bacchus, called by the Greeks _Ascolia_ (Ἀσκώλια), ἀσκὸς being the Greek equivalent of _uter_.

=Uti Rogas=, R. A voting formula affirmative of the proposition in debate, written on the ticket in the abbreviated form V. R. for _uti rogas_ (as you propose).

=Utricularius=, R. (from _uter_). A performer on the bagpipe.

=Utriculus.= Diminutive of UTER (q.v.).