=Fabaria=, R. Offerings of bean-flour (_faba_) made by the Romans on the
1st of June to the goddess Carna; from these offerings the calends of
June took the name of _fabariæ_.
=Fabatarium=, R. A large earthenware vessel in which bean-flour (_puls
fabacia_) was served, boiled up with water or broth. It formed a kind of
_polenta_.
=Fabrica=, R. (_faber_, an artisan). The shop in which an artisan works,
chiefly a joiner’s or carpenter’s shop.
=Fabrilia=, R. A general term, including all the different kinds of
tools used by an artisan.
=Façade=, Arch. The _face_ or front of a building.
=Face-guard.= On a helmet, a bar or bars of iron protecting the face.
=Face-painting=, O. E. Portrait painting.
=Facets= (Fr. _facette_, a little face). The flat surfaces cut upon
precious stones.
=Facial Angle.= The angle formed by two lines, one horizontal from the
nostrils to the ear, the other perpendicular from the nostrils to the
forehead.
=Fac-simile= (from Latin _factum_, made, and _simile_, like). A
perfectly exact copy.
=Factorium= (sc. _vas_), R. A vessel containing exactly a _factum_, or
quantity of grapes or olives proper to be placed under the press
(_torcular_) at one _factum_ or making.
=Faculæ=, R. Little torches.
[Illustration: Fig. 301. Faenza sweetmeat-dish.]
=Faenza.= A manufacture of pottery considered by some writers to be the
most ancient in Italy. _Garzoni_, writing in 1485, says, “The majolicas
of F. are white and polished, and one can no more confound them with
those of Treviso, than one would take puff-balls for truffles.”
_Vincenzo Lazari_ says they are distinguished by the softness of the
tints, the correctness of the drawing, and the whiteness of the enamel
at the back. For a long and interesting account of this most important
botega, see _Jacquemart_, _Hist. of the Ceramic Art_. The name of
_Fayence_ is derived from Faenza, and _not_ from the little town of
Fayence in France. (Fig. 301.)
=Faience.= (See FAYENCE.)
=Fairy Butter=, O. E. (1) A fungous excrescence about the roots of
trees, and (2) a species of _tremella_ found on furze and broom are so
called.
=Fairy Circles.= Circles of coarse green grass common in meadows, and
attributed to the dancing of the fairies.
=Fairy Dances= = FAIRY CIRCLES (q.v.).
=Fairy Darts.= Small flints in the form of arrow-heads, possibly of the
stone age.
=Fairy Faces.= Fossil _echini_ or sea-urchins.
=Fairy Groats.= A country name for certain old coins. (See _Harrison’s
England_, p. 218.)
=Fairy Loaves.= Fossils found in the chalk, called also _fairy faces_.
=Fairy Money.= Treasure trove was so called.
=Fairy Pipes.= Small old tobacco-pipes, frequently found in the north of
England.
=Fairy Rings.= (See FAIRY CIRCLES.)
=Fairy Sparks.= Phosphoric light seen on various substances in the night
time. (_Halliwell._)
=Fairy Stones.= (See FAIRY LOAVES.)
=Faith=, in Christian art, is represented by a female figure holding the
Eucharistic cup.
=Fala=, R. A wooden tower used in the siege of a fortified place, but
the exact form of which is unknown; it differed from the ACROBATICON.
=Falarica= or =Phalarica=, R. A heavy spear, used by the Saguntines,
which was generally discharged from a _balista_. Its shaft was sometimes
enveloped with sulphur and resin, and with tow steeped in oil; and it
was launched blazing against wooden towers for the purpose of setting
them on fire.
=Falbala.= (See FURBELOW.)
=Falcastrum=, R. (_falx_, a sickle). An agricultural tool with a curved
blade for tearing up weeds.
=Falcatus=, R. Furnished with scythes (_falces_). (See CURRUS.)
=Falchion.= A broadsword, spelt “fawchon;” 14th century. (See FALX.)
=Falcicula.= Dimin. of _falx_.
=Falcon=, in mediæval art, is the attribute of a gentleman, in allusion
to the restrictions of the sumptuary laws.
=Falcula.= Dimin. of _falx_.
=Faldestol=, O. E. An elbow-chair of state; modern “_fauteuil_.” (See
FALDSTOOL.)
=Falding= (A.S. _feald_). A kind of coarse cloth, like frieze.
=Faldstool=, =Faldistory=, O. E. A folding-stool, like a modern
camp-stool, used in cathedral church services in Saxon times.
=Fall= or =Falling-band=. A large collar falling on to the shoulders;
16th and 17th centuries. (See BANDS.)
=Fallals=, O. E. The falling ruffs of a woman’s dress.
=False=, Her. Said of any charge when its central area is removed; thus
an annulet is a “false roundle.”
=False Roof=, Arch. The space between the ceiling of the garret and the
roof.
=Falx=, R. A scythe, sickle, bill-hook, &c.; any instrument with a
curved edge used for cutting grass, wood, or other objects. There were
many different kinds, which were called respectively _arboraria_ and
_sylvatica_, _denticulata_, _fænaria_ or _veruculata_, _vinitoria_,
_vineatica_, and _putatoria_. The term _falx_ was also applied to a
falchion strongly curved at the end. _Falx supina_ was a dagger with a
keen and curved blade; _falx muralis_ was an instrument employed in
warfare, both by sea and land, either to cut the masts and rigging of a
vessel, or to sweep the ramparts clear of defenders. [_Culter_ is a
knife with one straight edge; _falx_, one with the edge curved. Hence
our _falchion_, &c.]
=Familia=, Med. Lat. An old term for a set of chessmen. Among the jewels
in the wardrobe-book of Edward I. occur “una _familia_ de ebore, pro
ludendo ad scaccarium,” and “una familia pro scaccario de jaspide et
crystallo.”
[Illustration: Fig. 302. Feather Fan—Italian.]
=Fan=, Egyp. With the _Egyptians_, the fan of ostrich feathers for
brushing away flies was looked upon as the insignia of princes and
chieftains; the _flabellum_ or _umbellum_ (parasol) was carried by
inferior officers. Both kinds of fan are frequently represented on the
sacred barges. The use of the fan was first introduced into England in
the 16th century; they were first made of feathers with long handles of
gold, silver, or ivory of elaborate workmanship, and sometimes inlaid
with precious stones. The engraving shows one from a portrait of Queen
Elizabeth. The _Greeks_ and _Romans_ had fans of various elegant
materials, often of peacock’s feathers; sometimes of wings of birds, or
of linen stretched on a frame. _Italian_ fans, mediæval, were square
flags, as in Fig. 303. Folding fans were first introduced in the 17th
century. Inventories of churches and monasteries of the 14th century
include ecclesiastical fans or _flabella_. These are still used in the
Catholic Church in the East. An illumination at Rouen represents the
deacon raising the flabellum, a circular fan with a long handle, over
the head of the priest at the altar. In the accounts of the
churchwardens of Walberswick, Suffolk, of 1493, is the entry “for a
bessume of pekok’s fethers, IVd.” (Figs. 302, 303.)
[Illustration: Fig. 303. Venetian lady, with a square fan of the 16th
century.]
=Fan-crest=, Her. An early form of decoration for the knightly helm.
=Fandango.= A Spanish dance.
=Fane.= (1) A vane or weathercock; “a fayne of a schipe,” i. e. a vane
on the top of a mast. “Of sylver his maste, of golde his _fane_.” (2)
_Anglo-Saxon._ A banner. (3) The white flower-de-luce. (_Gerard._) (4)
Enemies. (_Halliwell._) (See also FANUM.)
=Fanfare=, Fr. A flourish of trumpets.
=Fannel= or =Phannel=, O. E. The FANON (q.v.).
=Fanon=, Chr. The maniple or napkin worn by the priest at mass. It was
originally nothing but a plain strip of linen worn on the left wrist. In
later times it was highly decorated, and often made of the richest
materials.
=Fan-tao=, Chinese. A fabulous peach-tree, which blossoms every 3000
years; represented on pottery as an attribute of Cheou-Lao, the god of
longevity, who holds in his hand a fruit of it.
=Fan-tracery.= In Gothic architecture, elaborate carved work spread over
an arched surface, like a fan with the handle resting on a corbel or
stone bracket below.
=Fanum=, R. (_fari_, to speak); Eng. =Fane=. A term synonymous with
TEMPLUM (q.v.), but implying also the idea of a place which had been
consecrated by the solemn formula of the augurs. The _fanum_ thus
comprised not only the building itself, the temple, but also all the
consecrated ground surrounding it [“_locus liberatus et effatus_.”]
=Farrago=, R. (i. e. made of _far_, spelt). Fodder for horses and
cattle, consisting of the green ears of different kinds of grain.
[Illustration: Fig. 304. Farthingale of the time of Elizabeth.]
=Farthingale= (Fr. _vertugale_) is first spoken of in 1547. It was a
sort of cage made of whalebone worn under the petticoat, increasing the
size of the hips. In Elizabeth’s reign it reached to a preposterous
size, giving the wearer the appearance of “standing in a drum,”
according to “Sir Roger de Coverley.” There were _wheel-farthingales_
and _tub-farthingales_. Farthingales were worn during the reign of
Charles I., but of more moderate dimensions; and in Charles II.’s reign
the fashion vanished to reappear in the hoop of the 18th century. The
engraving gives an example of a moderate farthingale. (Fig. 304.)
=Fartura=, R. (_farcio_, to stuff). The act of fattening poultry; and
thence applied to a kind of structure, the centre of which was filled
with rubble.
=Fasces.= (See FASCIS.)
[Illustration: Fig. 305. Roman lictor carrying the fasces.]
=Fascia=, R. Any strip of cloth used for a bandage; such as (1) the
swathes (Gr. σπάργανον) in which newly-born children were wrapped; (2) a
white band, or for women, a purple, worn as a diadem (DIADEMA); (3) (_f.
pectoralis_) a bandage worn by young Roman girls to prevent excessive
development of the breast; (4) (_f. cruralis_) a bandage wound closely
round the leg from the ankle to the knee, &c.; these were adopted in
Europe in the Middle Ages; (5) (_f. pedulis_, Gr. ποδεῖον) a sock; (6)
see ZONA. (7) In _architecture_ the term _fascia_ or _facia_ is applied
to three flat parallel _bands_ of stone, introduced to break the
monotony of architraves, more especially of the Ionic, Corinthian, and
Composite Orders.
=Fasciculus=, R. (dimin. of _fascis_). A small bundle, or number of
objects tied up into small bundles.
=Fascina= (_fascinum_ = fascination). Amulets worn to avert the “evil
eye.” “Nescio quis teneros oculus mihi fascinat agnos.” (_Virgil._)
=Fasciola= (dimin. of _fascia_). A small bandage. (See FASCIA.)
=Fascis=, R. A bundle; a small packet; a small faggot of wood, or
fascine. In the plural _fasces_ denoted the bundle of rods, with an axe
in the middle, carried by the lictors before certain of the Roman
magistrates. (See Fig. 305.) _Fasces laureati_ were the fasces crowned
with laurel leaves, which were carried before a victorious general;
_fasces versi_, the reversed fasces, which were carried axe downwards,
in token of mourning, at funerals. The fasces were carried by the
lictors on their shoulders, as shown in Fig. 305; and when an inferior
magistrate met a superior one, the lictors of the former lowered their
fasces to him; hence the expression _submittere fasces_, to yield or
confess inferiority.
=Faselus.= (See PHASELUS.)
=Fasti=, R. (_fas_, divine law). Archives or calendars engraved on stone
or marble; they were of two kinds. (1) The _fasti sacri_ or
_kalendares_, a kind of almanack or calendar, setting out the _dies
fasti_, or lawful days on which certain kinds of business might be
transacted without impiety; also the religious festivals, &c. The
calendars were entirely in the keeping of the priests. (2) The _fasti
annales_ or _historici_, which contained the names of the consuls and
magistrates, and a short account of the most remarkable events. Some
important lists of this kind of the time of Tiberius are preserved in
the capitol at Rome, and called the Fasti Capitolini.
=Fastigium=, R. (_fastigo_, to raise to a point). The top of a pediment,
and thence the entire pediment itself. In a building this term also
signifies the _ridge_, or top of a roof whose two sides rise up to a
point.
=Faun= (Lat. _Faunus_). A woodland god, frequently represented with
sharp ears and with the feet of a goat.
=Fauteau=, Fr. A military engine used in the Middle Ages; it was a kind
of battering-ram suspended in a tower. (See ARIES.)
=Faux=, R. Any narrow passage, lobby, corridor, or entrance to a house,
in especial the passage which formed the communication between two
blocks of a house. In the plural, _fauces_, like _carceres_, denoted
stalls or stables for horses. (See CARCER.)
=Favissæ=, R. Pits or cellars under a temple, in which all the furniture
and sacred implements which had become unfit for use were kept.
=Favour=, O. E. A love-gift; a ribbon or glove, &c., worn on the crest
of the favoured knight at a tournament, &c.
=Favourite=, O. E. A lock of hair: “a sort of modish lock, dangling on
the temples.” (_Ladies’ Dictionary_, 1694.)
=Favus=, R. A flagstone or tablet of marble cut into a hexagon, like the
cell of a honeycomb (_favus_), whence its name. [Pavements of this
pattern were called Sectilia.]
=Fax=, R. A torch. This consisted either of pieces of wood joined
together and steeped in resin, or a metal tube filled with inflammable
materials, such as resin, pitch, tallow, tow impregnated with wax, &c.
[The early evening was hence called _prima fax_, and as marriages were
celebrated at that time of day, the _torch_ was made an attribute of
Hymen, and a symbol of marriage. The torch was also carried at funerals
to fire the pile with.]
=Fayence.= Pottery.
=Feather.= In Christian art (German) an attribute of St. Barbara; it is
generally a peacock’s feather. This refers to an old German version of
her legend, which relates that when St. Barbara was scourged by her
father, angels changed the rods into feathers.
=Featherings=, in Architecture, are lacelike ornaments along the edges
of arcs in windows, canopies, &c.
[Illustration: Fig. 306. Ostrich feathers. (An escroll for a coronet.)]
=Feathers=, Her. The feathers borne as crests and badges are generally
those of the ostrich, sometimes of the swan, the turkey, and a few other
birds. Fig. 306 is a representation of an early plume of ostrich
feathers, as they are carved, with an escroll in place of a coronet, in
the Abbey Church of St. Albans. From the time of the accession of the
House of Stuart to the crown of the United Kingdom, the coroneted plume
of three ostrich feathers appears to have been regarded, as it is at
this present day, as the special badge of the Princes of Wales.
=Februa=, =Februales=, R. A festival in honour of the dead instituted by
Numa; it was celebrated every year on the ides of February.
=Feet.= In Christian art the feet of Our Lord, also of angels and of the
Apostles, should always be represented naked, without shoes or sandals.
(_Fairholt._)
=Felt= (Fr. _feutre_). A sort of coarse wool, or wool and hair. Felt
hats were first made in England by Spaniards and Dutchmen, in the
beginning of the reign of Henry VIII. Felt was also used for the
stuffing of garments.
=Feminalia= or =Femoralia=, R. (_femur_, the thigh). Short breeches or a
kind of drawers which reached from the waist to about the knee. [Worn by
Augustus Cæsar, who was very susceptible to cold.]
=Fendace= (armour). The old name for the gorget.
=Fenestella=, Chr. (lit. a small window). A niche made in the wall of a
church, near the altar, and containing the stone basin in which the
priest poured away the water in which he had washed the chalice.
=Fenestra, Window.= _Fenestra biforis_ is a _Gemel-window_, formed by a
double bay. _Fenestra_ was the name given to the hole pierced in the
ears to receive the ear-rings, as also to the loop-holes made in the
walls of a fortress.
=Fenestration=, Arch. A term which expresses the disposition and
arrangement of all the windows in a house.
=Fengite.= Transparent alabaster used for glass in windows.
=Ferculum=, R. (_fero_, to carry). Contracted form of _fericulum_, a
tray, and thence the dishes carried upon a tray; a _course_ or _remove_.
In a triumphal procession the term was applied to a platform for
displaying an enemy’s spoils, a rich booty, images of the gods, &c.; or
the ashes of the dead in a funeral.
[Illustration: Fig. 307. Silver Feretory or Reliquary, of good English
work, for the most part in repoussé.]
=Feretory=, Chr. (1) A richly ornamented shrine, often of solid gold and
set with jewels, in which the relics of saints are carried in Roman
Catholic processions. (2) The enclosure or chapel in which the shrine
was kept.
=Feretrum= or =Pheretrum=, Gr, R., and Chr. (Lat. _capulus_). A bier;
sometimes a shrine. The term was used at a period when coffins were
uncommon; more properly the FERETORY, 1 (q.v.).
=Feriæ=, R. Days of festival among the Romans; they were classed as
follows: (1) _Feriæ statæ_ or _stativæ_, which were held regularly on
the days indicated in the calendar; these were the _immovable
festivals_, such as the Agonalia, Carmentalia, Lupercalia, &c. (2)
_Feriæ conceptæ_ or _conceptivæ_, which were held every year, but at
uncertain intervals; these were the _movable festivals_, such as the
Latinæ, Sementivæ, Paganalia, and Compitalia. (3) Lastly, there were the
_feriæ imperativæ_ or _official festivals_, which were held by order of
the dictators, consuls, or prætors. All _feriæ_ were _dies nefasti_, on
which lawsuits, political transactions, &c. were impious, and slaves
were relieved of their labour. The _feriæ Latinæ_ were the most
important of all Roman festivals.
=Fermail=, Her. A buckle.
=Ferr=, Her. A horse-shoe.
=Ferrara.= A manufactory of majolica in North Italy, described by
Jacquemart as “one of the most brilliant in Italy;” established by
Alfonso I. with artists imported from Faenza, circa 1495.
(_Jacquemart._)
=Ferrea Solea.= A horse-shoe. (See SOLEA and HIPPOSANDALIUM.)
=Ferriterium.= A prison for slaves. Synonym of ERGASTULUM (q.v.).
=Ferula=, R. The fennel; a plant with which children were beaten for
slight faults, and thence a cane or stick with which slaves were
chastised.
[Illustration: Fig. 308. Fesse.]
=Fesse=, Her. One of the ordinaries. A broad band of metal or colour
crossing the shield horizontally.
=Fesse-point=, Her. The central point of an escutcheon.
=Fesse-wise=, =In Fesse=, Her. Disposed in a horizontal line, side by
side, across the centre of a field, and over the fesse-point of a
shield.
[Illustration: Fig. 309. Festoon of foliage.]
=Festoon=, Arch. Garland of flowers. (Fig., 309.) (See ENCARPA.)
=Festra=, R. An abbreviation anciently employed for FENESTRA (q.v.).
=Festuca= or =Vindicta=, R. The rod which the lictor held over the head
of a slave during the ceremony of _manumissio_, by which he was given
his freedom. (See MANUMISSIO.)
=Fetter-lock=, Her. A shackle, padlock; a Yorkshire badge.
=Fibrinæ= (vestes), =Fibrinæ= (lanæ). (See CASTOREÆ.)
[Illustration: Fig. 310. Fibula. Gallic.]
[Illustration: Fig. 311. Fibula. Gallic.]
=Fibula=, Gen. (_figo_, to fix). (1) A clasp, buckle, or brooch; any
contrivance made of gold, silver, bronze, ivory, &c., used for fastening
male or female attire. (2) The buckle of a head-band (_tænia_, _vitta_).
Figs. 310 and 311 represent buttons and clasps belonging to the Gaulish
and Merovingian periods. [The girdles of the _Franks_ and _Saxons_,
found in English tombs, were usually ornamented most profusely. Not only
were the buckles (_fibulæ_) of the richest workmanship, and conspicuous
for size and decoration, but they are sometimes supplemented by enchased
plates, or plates set with precious stones. (_Roach Smith._)] (See Figs.
105 to 113.)
=Fictile Ware=, =Keremania=, R. (_fingo_, to mould). Any object made of
terra-cotta or pottery, such as tiles, bricks, vases, &c. (See POTTERY.)
=Fiddle= (A.S. _fithele_), or =Viol=, is represented in an Anglo-Saxon
MS. of the 11th century, of a pear-shape, with four strings. The
fiddle-bow probably originated in Hindustan, where the _Hindus_ claim
that the ravanastron was invented about 5000 years ago by Ravanon, a
king of Ceylon. Almost identical with this is the _Chinese_ fiddle
called _urheen_, which has only two strings, and its body consists of a
small block of wood, hollowed out and covered with a snake-skin. A
German fiddle of the 9th century, called _lyra_, has only one string. In
the Nibelungen Lied Volker is described as dexterous in playing the
fiddle. Interesting representations of performers on the fiddle are
painted on the roof of Peterborough Cathedral. They are attributed to
the 12th century.
=Fidelia=, R. An earthenware vessel or jar used as a receptacle for
cement.
=Fides= or =Fidis=, R. A general term comprising all stringed or gut
instruments (from _sphidé_, catgut).
=Fidicula=, R. (dimin. of _fides_). A very fine catgut string, a
_treble-string_. The plural _fidiculæ_ denotes an instrument of torture
for slaves, the form of which is unknown.
=Field.= In Numismatics, the surface of a coin on which objects were
engraved; in Heraldry, the entire surface of a shield or banner.
=Figure-paintings.= Paintings of the human figure.
[Illustration: Fig. 312. Silver Filigree. Reliquary, belonging to Lord
Hastings, said to have been dug up in the foundations of St. Paul’s,
London.]
=Filagree=, =Filigree=, or =Filigraine= (It. _filigrana_ = _filum_ and
_granum_, or granular network; so called because the Italians, who first
introduced this style of work, placed beads upon it. [_Ure._]). This
work is of gold or silver wire plaited and soldered into delicate
arabesques and flower patterns. In the 15th century the Spanish Moors
“made admirable chiselled, enamelled, and gilt work, and applied
filigree work on the surface, a system kept up at Salamanca and Cordova
to the present day.” The Eastern nations have always been famous for
filigree work.
=File=, Her. A label (from the Latin _filum_, a narrow ribbon).
=Filfot=, called also the =Gammadion=. (See FYLFOT.)
=Filigree Glass.= (See GLASS.)
=Fillet=, Her. A diminutive of a chief.
=Fillets=, Gen. Strips of linen employed for various purposes. The
victims which were conducted by priests to sacrifice were adorned with
sacred fillets. Among the Egyptians fillets were employed to swathe
mummies, the strips being repeatedly wound by the embalmers round the
corpse, till it reassumed the appearance it had presented before being
dried. (See DIADEM, FASCIA.) In Architecture, a small round or
rectangular moulding which separates two others which are larger and
more prominent; the fillet also separates the flutings of columns. (See
TÆNIA.)
=Fimbria=, R. The border or fringe of a cloth or garment. [These were
more common among the Egyptians and Assyrians than the Greeks and
Romans, and are mentioned in the Bible.]
[Illustration: Fig. 313. Cross fimbriated.]
=Fimbriated=, Her. Bordered; the border (which is narrow) lying in the
same plane with the object bordered. (Fig. 313.)
[Illustration: Fig. 314. Finial.]
=Finial.= In Gothic architecture, an ornament of carved work
representing foliage, on the apex of a spire or pinnacle. (See CROCKET.)
(Fig. 314.)
=Fir-cone= upon a stem was the form of vases special to the majolica
manufactory of Deruba; “a form,” says Jacquemart, “quite special to that
manufactory, and directly imitated from the extreme East and from Asia
Minor.”
=Fire.= Flames of fire placed near St. Anthony signify his spiritual aid
as patron saint against fire in all shapes, in the next world and in
this. _Tongues of fire_ are, of course, depicted on the heads of the
Apostles, in representations of the Day of Pentecost.
=Fire-dog.= (See ANDIRON.)
=Fire-lock.= The musket fired by flint and steel, invented in France
about the year 1630. (See MATCH-LOCK.)
=Fire-stommer=, O. E. A poker.
=Fiscus=, R. A wicker-work basket used for gardening purposes,
especially for gathering in the olive and grape crops. The Romans also
made use of this basket for transporting sums of money; hence _fiscus_
came to mean a moneychest, and was the name given to that part of the
revenue which was applied to the civil list of the emperors [opposed to
_ærarium_, the property of the senate]; but at last the word was used to
signify generally the property of the state.
=Fish.= In Christian art, the symbol of water and the rite of baptism.
(See ACROSTIC and VESICA PISCIS.)
=Fistuca=, R. A pavior’s ram or beetle; a wooden bar or pile used to
consolidate floorings, masonry, and pavements.
=Fistula=, R. (1) A water-pipe of lead or earthenware. (2) A writing-pen
made of reed, and thence a Pan’s pipe. (3) A rolling-pin for making
pastry. (4) A probe. (5) A machine for bruising corn, which was called
_fistula farraria_.
=Fitch.= The best of paint-brushes are made of the hair of the _fitch_
or polecat. They are black, elastic, and firm though soft. They are made
flat or round, and are used also for varnishing.
=Fitchée=, Her. Pointed at the base.
=Flabelliform=, Arch. (_flabellum_). Fan-shaped. The term is usually
applied to an ornament composed of leaves and palms, which is of
frequent occurrence on Romano-Byzantine monuments.
=Flabellum=, Gen. (_flo_, to blow). A fan. (See FAN.)
=Flagellum=, Gen. (_flagrum_). A whip or scourge made with thongs of
leather, especially thongs of the ox’s hide, or twisted or knotted
cords, &c., used in antiquity for punishing slaves or culprits. It was a
terrible weapon, and the lash was often knotted with bones, or heavy
metal _hooks_ to tear the flesh (_scorpio_). Gladiators used to fight in
the arena with _flagella_.
=Flagon=. A vessel with a long neck covered at top, and a spout. The
flagons of the 15th and 16th centuries are the best in design and
ornamentation.
=Flail.= A weapon like a flail, of wood and iron armed with spikes,
_temp._ Henry VIII.
=Flake-white.= So called from its form, in commerce, of _flakes_ or
scales. As a pigment it possesses great body, and enters largely into
numerous compound tints. (_Fairholt._) (See CARBONATE OF LEAD.)
=Flamboyant= (style), Mod. The style of French architecture peculiar to
the 15th century, so called because the mullions and tracery of the
windows in the monuments belonging to that period are curved and twisted
like the waving of flames. This style was contemporary with that called
“the perpendicular” in England.
=Flamen=, R. A priest devoted to the service of any one god; e. g.
_Flamen Martialis_, the priest of Mars. Their characteristic dress was
the APEX, the LÆNA, and a laurel wreath.
=Flaming Heart=, in Christian symbolism, expresses fervent piety and
love.
=Flammeolum= (dimin. of _flammeum_). A term denoting a texture much
finer than that of the _flammeum_.
=Flammeum=, R. A bridal veil worn by the bride on the day of her
marriage; it was of light gauze, and in colour of a vivid and brilliant
yellow, like a flame; whence its name. It covered the lady from head to
foot, and was removed by the bridegroom on their arrival home after the
ceremony.
=Flammula=, R. A small flame; a small banner borne by light cavalry
regiments; it was of a vivid and brilliant yellow colour, like the
bridal _flammeum_; whence its name. (Modern ORIFLAMME, q.v.)
=Flanches=, =Flasques=, Her. Subordinaries.
[Illustration: Fig. 315. Flat-heads.]
=Flat-heads=, =Projecting-heads=, Mod. An ornament peculiar to the
Romano-Byzantine period, which decorates archivolts. Fig. 315 gives an
example of flat-heads; Fig. 316 of projecting-heads.
[Illustration: Fig. 316. Projecting-heads.]
=Flaying-knife.= An attribute of St. Bartholomew, signifying the manner
of his martyrdom. In Croyland Abbey it was anciently the custom to
present all members of the community with small flaying-knives on St.
Bartholomew’s Day (Aug. 24).
[Illustration: Fig. 317. Old Flemish Lace.]
=Flemish Lace.= Flanders and Italy dispute the invention of pillow lace.
It is certain, however, that lace of home manufacture was worn in the
15th century in the Low Countries, and from that time to the present
lace-making has formed a source of national wealth to Belgium. The
engraving shows a fine specimen of old Flemish lace composed of six
different designs joined together, commonly known as “Trolle Kant.” A
similar lace is made in some of our own counties, and called “Trolly.”
(Fig. 317.)
[Illustration: Fig. 318. “Cosse de Genest,” showing a Cross fleurettée.]
=Fleur-de-lis= (Fr.), the royal insignia of France, was first adopted by
Louis VII. (about A. D. 1137) _semée_, or scattered over the field. This
shield is blazoned as “France Ancient.” On the occasion of his marriage,
in 1234, St. Louis instituted the order of the “Cosse de Genest” (Fig.
318), and, as an emblem of his humility, took for his badge the
broom-flower with the motto _Exaltat humiles_. The collar of the order
was composed of broom-flowers enamelled, intermixed with fleurs-de-lis.
In the reign of Charles VI. four collars of the order of the Cosse de
Genest were sent as presents to King Richard II. and his uncles the
Dukes of Lancaster, Gloucester, and York. The fleur-de-lis entered the
English insignia in 1275 with the marriage of Edmund with Blanche of
Artois, and was erased on January 1, 1801.
=Fleurettée=, Her. Terminating in, or bordered with fleurs-de-lis, like
the cross in Fig. 318.
=Fleuron.= A small full-blown rose placed in the centre of the abacus of
the capital in certain orders of architecture.
=Flexed=, Her. Bowed, bent.
=Flighted=, Her. Feathered, as arrows are.
=Flo=, O. E. An arrow.
“Robin bent his joly bowe,
Therein he set a _flo_.”
(_Wright’s Songs and Carols._)
=Floralia=, or =Florales Ludi=. A Roman festival in honour of Flora,
said to have been instituted B.C. 238, to invoke the protection of the
goddess upon the spring blossoms.
=Florentine Fresco.= A peculiar method of fresco-painting, by which the
lime is kept moistened during the process.
=Florentine Lake.= (See CARMINATED LAKES.)
=Florentine Mosaic.= Inlaid-work in coloured stones, and precious stones
combined into beautiful patterns.
=Florid= (style), Arch. This term, now disused, has been replaced by
that of FLAMBOYANT style (q.v.).
=Florimontana.= A literary society established at Annecy in 1606. They
took for their device an orange tree, with the motto, “_Flores,
fructusque perennes_.”
=Fluor-spar= or =Derbyshire-spar=. A mineral rock very common in
Derbyshire, where it is made into ornaments, &c., with the lathe.
=Flute=, Gen. Said to have been invented by Apollo or Mercury. The
simplest form of flute was made with an oat-stalk (_avena_) or a hollow
reed (_calamus_); in the course of time it was made of ivory, bone, or
the shin-bones of animals; whence its Latin name of TIBIA (q.v.). The
Greek flute (_aulos_) was held like a flageolet, and a vibrating reed
was inserted into the mouthpiece. The single flute was called
_monaulos_; the double one _diaulos_. A specimen of the last in the
British Museum was found in a tomb at Athens. It is made of cedar, and
the tubes, which are fifteen inches in length, have each a separate
mouthpiece and six finger-holes, five of which are at the upper side,
and one underneath. The flutes of the _Etruscans_ were often of ivory;
those used in religious ceremonies were of box-wood, ass’s bone, bronze,
and silver. The _Persian_ flute called “_nay_,” and the “_surnay_” a
kind of oboe, are still popular in the East. In _Mexico_, the young man
sacrificed to the god was taught to play the flute, and as he went to
his death he broke a flute on each of the steps of the temple. The
practice of making flutes of the bones of their enemies was common with
many Indian tribes in America.
[Illustration: Fig. 319. Flutings.]
=Flutings= or =Flutes=, Arch. Small semicircular indents or grooves cut
perpendicularly, by way of ornament, in the shafts of columns and
pilasters. Flutings may be either decorated or plain. When filled with a
bead moulding, they are said to be _cabled_. Fig. 319 represents
flutings decorated with leaves twined round a reed.
=Fly=, Her. The length and also the side of a flag furthest from the
mast.
=Fo=, Chinese. (See DOG OF FO.) The “Hand of Fo” is a fragrant fruit, a
kind of _cédrat_, generally styled the Chinese hand-plant, used to
perfume apartments.
=Focale=, R. (_fauces_, the throat). A square piece of cloth which was
wrapped round the neck, and covered the ears.
[Illustration: Fig. 320. Foculus.]
=Foculus=, R. (dimin. of _focus_). A portable fireplace; a brazier or
chafing-dish. (Fig. 320.)
=Focus=, R. The hearth or fireplace of a house, consecrated to the Lares
or household gods.
=Foil=, in Architecture. (See TREFOIL, QUATREFOIL, &c.)
[Illustration: Fig. 321. Foliage of the Acanthus.]
=Foliage=, Gen. Nearly every style of architecture has made use of
foliage for purposes of ornamentation. In antiquity, the leaves of the
acanthus, palm, laurel, olive, ivy, &c., were thus employed; the
Romano-Byzantine, Byzantine, and Pointed styles utilized for the same
purpose the vine, oak, cinquefoil, parsley, mahonia, mullein, thistle,
&c. Foliage has been applied to the decoration of capitals, archivolts,
bands, cornices, and friezes; and it has also been used to form CROCKETS
(q.v.), crownings, pinnacles, &c. Architectural work thus enriched is
said to be FOLIATED, and the ornament itself is called FOLIATION.
[Illustration: Fig. 322. Foliage on moulding.]
=Folliculus=, R. A leather cap encircling the hole by which an oar
protruded from a ship. The term is a diminutive of FOLLIS (q.v.).
=Follis=, R. A small ball of leather inflated with air, which also went
by the name of _folliculus_; used for a plaything.
=Fong-hoang=, Chinese. A fabulous bird which is immortal, lives in the
highest regions of the air, and only approaches men to announce to them
happy events and prosperous reigns. It is easily recognized (on pottery,
&c.) by its carunculated head, its neck surrounded by silky feathers,
and its tail partaking of the Argus pheasant and the peacock.
(_Jacquemart._)
[Illustration: Fig. 323. Pompeian fountain.]
=Fons=, =Fountain=, Gen. In antiquity, natural springs and fountains
were objects of religious worship. Fig. 323 represents a Pompeian
fountain known as the Fountain of Abundance.
[Illustration: Fig. 324. Baptismal font (Romano-Byzantine).]
=Font=, Chr. The vessel which contains the consecrated water used in the
administration of baptism, by sprinkling or aspersion (Fig. 324),
introduced in lieu of the original mode of immersion (Fig. 325).
(Compare PISCINA.)
[Illustration: Fig. 325. Early English Font.]
[Illustration: Fig. 326. The Fontange Head-dress.]
=Fontange=, Fr. “A modish head-dress,” deriving its name from
Mademoiselle de Fontange, a lady of the court of Louis XIV., who
invented it. (Fig. 326.)
=Font-cloth=, O. E. (1) The hanging with which the font was ornamented.
(2) The CHRISMALE (q.v.).
=Fools.= In Church architecture and decoration, grotesque figures of men
with fool’s cap and bells are frequently seen under the seats of
choir-stalls and _miserere_ seats. (See the article OBSCŒNA.)
=Foolscap.= A fool’s cap was the device of the Italian society called
the Granelleschi, formed at Venice in 1740 to oppose the corruption of
the Italian language. A sheet of foolscap paper is 17 in. by 13½ in.
=Forceps.= Tongs or pincers, the attributes of some of the martyrs. (See
FORFEX.)
=Foreshortening.= The art of representing objects on a plane surface as
they appear to the eye in perspective.
[Illustration: Fig. 327. Roman Forfex.]
[Illustration: Fig. 328. Forfex.]
=Forfex=, R. (1) Large scissors or shears used to cut hair or shear
animals. (2) A clip, in the form of shears, for raising weights. (Fig.
327.) Fig. 328 represents a shears described by Vitruvius, which was
used to raise stones.
=Fori=, R. This term, which is the plural of _forus_, denotes (1) the
flooring of a ship; (2) the flooring of a bridge; (3) the
standing-places on a temporary platform; (4) the shelves forming the
divisions or different stories of a beehive; (5) the narrow parallel
furrows drawn in a garden by means of the hoe.
=Foricula.= A little door. Dimin. of FORIS (q.v.).
=Foris=, R. The door as distinguished from the frame in which it hung.
In the plural, _fores_ denotes a folding-door with two leaves, as, for
instance, _fores carceris_, the door of the stalls in a circus.
=Forks= were not in general use earlier than the 14th century. One of
the earliest occasions on which a fork is mentioned informs us that
John, Duke of Brittany in 1306, had one “to pick up soppys.”
=Forlon.= A Spanish carriage with four seats.
=Forma=, R. (_fero_, to produce). A mould, form, or model; a mould for
making bricks or other objects in clay, such as (1) antefixa, masks,
&c.; (2) a shoemaker’s last; (3) the waterway of a subterranean
aqueduct. _Diminutive_, =Formella=, R. A small shape or mould used
especially by the Romans to give an artificial form to the fish which
was served as one of the courses at dinner.
=Fornacalia=, R. A festival of bakers in honour of the goddess _Fornax_
(oven-goddess). It took place in February, the day being given out by
the _curio maximus_, who announced, in tablets which were placed in the
forum, the part which each _curia_ had to take in the festival. Those
persons who did not know to which curia they belonged, performed the
rites on the last day, called _Stultorum feriæ_ (the feasts of fools).
=Fornacula= (dimin. of FORNAX, q.v.). (1) A small furnace for smelting
metals. (2) A small furnace for a bath-room.
=Fornax=, R. A furnace; an oven; a kiln for baking pottery: _fornax
calcaria_, a lime-kiln; _fornax æraria_, a blast-furnace for smelting
metals; _fornax balnei_, a hypocaust or bathfurnace; this was also
called FORNACULA (q.v.). FORNAX is also the name of the goddess of
_ovens_.
=Fornix=, R. A term having the same meaning as ARCUS (q.v.). It also
denotes (1) a triumphal arch (_arcus triumphalis_); (2) a vault or
vaulted room; (3) a vaulted gate.
=Forril.= A kind of parchment, specially prepared for bookbinding.
=Forulus=, R. (dimin. of _forus_, a shelf). A cupboard, cabinet, or
dwarf bookcase.
[Illustration: Fig. 329. Ground-plan of the Forum at Pompeii.]
=Forum=, R. A large open space used by the Romans as a market; it
answered to the Greek AGORA (q.v.). Fig. 329 represents the _forum
civile_ of Pompeii, unquestionably one of the most complete examples
bequeathed to us by antiquity. _A_ is the principal entrance; _B_, a
Corinthian temple; _C_, the public prison (_carcer publicus_); _D_ is
supposed to have been a horreum, or public granary; _E_, the temple of
Venus, the guardian goddess of the city; _F_, the basilica; _G_, _H_,
_I_, the curiæ, which were a kind of civil and commercial tribunals; _K_
is a rectangular building which probably served the purpose of a shop
for money-changers; _L_, a portico terminating in an absis; _M_, the
temple of Mercury or Quirinus; _N_, a building with a large semicircular
tribune, which probably formed the residence of the AUGUSTALES.
=Forus.= A synonym of FORUM (q.v.). _Forus aleatorius_ was the term
applied to a dice-table.
=Fossil Ivory.= The tusks of the mammoth—the extinct _elephas
primigenius_—found in great quantity in Siberia, are the material of
which nearly all the ivory-turner’s work in Russia is made. The ivory
has not undergone any petrifying change like other fossils, and is as
well adapted for use as that procured from living species.
=Fote= (or =Foot=) =Mantel=. An outer garment of the petticoat kind,
bound round the hips (of a woman on horseback) “to keep her gown or
surcoat clean.” (_Strutt._)
“A _fote-mantel_ about hir hips large.” (_Chaucer._)
=Fountain=, Her. A circular figure or ROUNDLE that is _barry wavy_ arg.
is so blazoned.
=Fourchée=, Her. Divided into two parts; said of a lion with a double
tail.
=Fraces=, R. A kind of fuel made of the tan obtained from the residuum
of oil-presses; it was thus the pulp of olives.
=Frænum=, =Frenum=, R. A horse’s bridle, including the bit and the
reins. [The bit was called _orea_ or Greek στόμιον.]
=Framea=, R. (1) A German spear, the iron head of which was short but
very sharp; it was employed by them as a pike. (2) A weapon used by the
Franks.
=Francisca.= A kind of battle-axe used by the Franks.
=Frankfort Black.= A German pigment prepared like _blue black_ (q.v.).
=French Ultramarine.= (See GUIMET’S ULTRAMARINE.)
=Fresco-Painting= (i. e. _al fresco_, upon fresh or wet ground),
generally employed for large pictures on walls and ceilings, is executed
with mineral and earthy pigments upon a freshly-laid ground of stucco.
It was known to the ancients, and must be distinguished from DISTEMPER
PAINTING (q.v.) on plaster, which is a different process. “_Buon_ (or
genuine) _fresco_,” painted on the fresh surface of plaster, is
distinguished from “_fresco secco_,” or a process of painting on dry
plaster commonly practised in Italy and Munich. It is argued that the
latter was the process used at Pompeii, and generally by the ancients,
because (1) lime is found in nearly all the colours, and (2) the nature
of the joinings in the work indicates that each compartment does not
contain only one day’s work, as it must in _buon fresco_.
[Illustration: Fig. 330. Greek Fret.]
[Illustration: Fig. 331. Greek Fret.]
[Illustration: Fig. 332. Greek Fret.]
=Fret=, Arch. An angular, interlaced architectural ornament of the Greek
and Romano-Byzantine period, also known as _broken batoon_ and
_Vitruvian scroll_, and presenting some analogy with _chevron_ or
zigzag. There are _crenelated_ or _rectangular frets_, _triangular_,
_nebulated_, _undulated frets_, &c.
[Illustration: Fig. 333. Undulated Fret.]
[Illustration: Fig. 334. Scroll Fret.]
=Fret=, O. E. A _caul_ of gold or silver wire.
“A _fret_ of golde she had next her hair.” (_Chaucer._)
[Illustration: Fig. 335. Badge of the Arundel family, with fret.]
=Fret= or =Frette=, Her. One of the subordinaries. The illustration is
one of the badges of the Arundel family: a chapeau or and gules,
surmounted by a _fret_ or, and an acorn leaved vert.
=Frieze=, Arch. That part of the entablature which is included between
the architrave and the cornice. (See Fig. 184.) Another name for it is
ZOOPHORUS (q.v.). It was generally richly sculptured. The finest frieze
ever found is that of the Parthenon, the ornamentation of which may be
studied in the Elgin-marble room at the British Museum. (See Fig. 282.)
=Frieze=, =Frize=. A coarse woollen cloth, first mentioned 1399.
“Cloth of gold, do not despize
To match thyself with cloth of frize.
Cloth of frize, be not too bold,
Though thou be matched with cloth of gold.”
=Frigidarium=, R. (_frigidus_, cold). (1) A cool apartment in a bathing
establishment. (2) A cool place used as a larder.
=Frisquet.= In wood-engraving, a piece of paper laid over the
proof-paper in the act of printing, to keep clean the parts not intended
to be exposed to the ink.
=Fritillus=, R. A dice-box of a cylindrical form, called also
_turricula_ or _pyrgus_ (Greek φιμός).
[Illustration: Fig. 336. Frog. The device of Mæcenas.]
=Frog.= An ancient emblem of silence and secrecy, from a legend quoted
by Ælian that the frogs of Syriapha never croak in their own marshes.
Hence it was adopted by Mæcenas, the friend of Augustus, for his device.
(Fig. 336.)
[Illustration: Fig. 337. Frontale of a bridle.]
=Frontale=, Gen. (_frons_, the forehead). (1) A frontlet or head-band
worn by Greek women, and to be seen principally on the statues of
goddesses. (2) A plate or band of metal placed across the forehead of
horses (Fig. 337) as a protection for the frontal bone. The Medes,
Persians, Greeks, and Romans made use of the _frontale_ for their
cavalry horses. For the ecclesiastical =Frontal=, Mediæval, see
ANTEPENDIUM. Henry III. gave a FRONTAL to the high altar at Westminster
Abbey, upon which, besides carbuncles in golden settings, and several
large pieces of enamel, were as many as 866 smaller pieces of enamel.
=Frontispiece.= In Architecture, the façade or face of a building. The
engraved title-page of a book was originally called the frontispiece.
=Frote=, O. E. To rub; to stir.
=Frountere=, O. E. FRONTAL (q.v.).
=Fucus=, Gr. Cosmetic paint, much used by the Greek and Roman ladies.
They stained their eyebrows black with a preparation of sulphuret of
antimony called _stimmi_, or of soot, _asbolos_. The Roman ladies, in
addition to rouge and white for the complexion, used to trace out the
veins on their temples with a blue paint, and they wore the patches of
Queen Anne’s time (_splenia_). “From beef without mustard, a servant
which overvalues himself, _and a woman which painteth_,—good Lord
deliver us!” (_Stubbes._)
=Fuller’s Bat= or =Club=. Attribute of St. James the Less, who was
killed with such an implement.
=Fullonica=, =Fullonum=, R. (_fullo_, a fuller). A fuller’s
establishment. An example of one, in perfect preservation, is preserved
at Pompeii. The _fullones_ acted as laundrymen to Greek and Roman
families, washing linen as well as woollen clothes by treading in tubs
(using urine for soap, which was unknown to them); hence _saltus
fullonicus_, a fuller’s dance.
=Fulmen.= The thunderbolt of Jove. (See also ILLAPA.) It is generally
represented as a double cone of flame, with lightnings on each side, or
frequently with wings.
=Fumarium=, R. (_fumus_, smoke). A chamber in the upper part of a Roman
house, into which the smoke from the fires was conducted. The smoke-room
was used for drying wood and ripening wine. The “Rauchkammer” or smoke
attic is still a common institution in good houses in Germany.
=Funale=, R. (_funis_, a rope). A link or torch made of various
materials.
=Funalis= or =Funarius= (sc. _equus_). The tracehorse, so called because
its traces, instead of being of leather, were of rope (_funis_).
=Funarius.= (See FUNALIS.)
=Funda, Sling=, Gen. The sling has been employed by most of the peoples
of antiquity as a weapon of warfare for hurling stones, chiefly flints
or leaden bullets (_glandes_). The slings of the Egyptians were made of
leather thongs or plaited cord. The _funaitores_, or slingers, of the
Greek and Roman armies carried each a provision of stones in the folds
(_sinus_) of his pallium, a shield on his left arm, and brandished his
sling in the right hand. The most celebrated slingers were the
inhabitants of the Balearic Islands, which took their ancient name from
this circumstance.
[Illustration: Fig. 338. Fundibalus—Onager.]
=Fundibalus=, =Fundibalum=, R. (βάλλω, to throw). A machine for hurling
stones; a kind of _balista_ (q.v.). (Fig. 338.)
[Illustration: Fig. 339. Street at Pompeii.]
=Fundula=, R. A blind alley or _cul-de-sac_. Fig. 339 represents one of
the kind at Pompeii.
=Fundulus=, R. The piston of a hydraulic machine.
=Funeral Ceremonies.= 1. Greek. The expressions τὰ δίκαια, νομιζόμενα,
or προσήκοντα, the just and lawful rites, are expressive of the Greek
idea that the proper burial of the dead was a most sacred duty to them.
The first act was to place in the mouth of the corpse an _obolus_, with
which the spirit would pay the ferryman in Hades. This coin was then
called _danaké_. The body was then washed and anointed, the head crowned
with flowers, and the handsomest robes put on. All this was done by the
women of the family. By the side of the bed upon which the corpse was
then laid (πρόθεσις) were placed painted earthen vessels (_lecuthoi_;
see LECYTHUS), which were afterwards buried with the corpse. (These
vases are frequently disinterred in modern excavations.) A honeycake
(_melittouta_) to throw to the dog Cerberus was laid on the bed. Before
the door a vessel of water (_ostracon_ or _ardalion_) was set, to be
used, like the holy water of Catholic times, by persons _leaving_ the
house, for purification. On the third day after death, the _ecphora_, or
carrying out for burial, took place in the morning before sunrise. The
men walked before the corpse, and the women behind. Hired mourners
(_threnodoi_) accompanied the procession, playing mournful tunes on the
flute. The bodies were either buried or burned, until cremation gave way
to a Christian prejudice. The body was placed for burning on the top of
a _pyre_ (Gr. πῦρ, fire); and, in remote ages, animals, prisoners, or
slaves were burned with it. Oils and perfumes were thrown into the
flames. Finally, the smouldering ashes were quenched with wine, and
relatives and friends collected what remained of the bones. The bones
were then washed with wine and oil, and placed in urns, often golden.
2. Roman. _Funera justa_ conveys the same idea as the Greek _dicaia_ of
the right and title of the dead to a proper observance. With the Romans,
the washing, anointing, &c. of the body was done by slaves
(_pollinctores_) of the undertakers, who were called _libitinarii_,
because they dwelt near the temple of Venus Libitina, in which all
things requisite for funerals were sold and a mortuary register was
kept. The coin having been duly placed in the mouth, the body was laid
out in the vestibule dressed, of ordinary citizens in a white toga, and
of magistrates in their official robes, and the couch was strewn with
flowers, and a branch of _cypress_ was placed at the door of the house.
All funerals were, in ancient times, performed at night, but afterwards
only those of the poor. At a great funeral the corpse was carried out on
the eighth day, preceded by musicians (_cornicines_, &c.) and mourning
women (_præficæ_), who chanted a funeral hymn (_nænia_); players and
buffoons (_histriones_, _scurræ_) followed, and a procession of the
freed slaves wearing the cap of liberty (_pileati_). Images of the
deceased and of his ancestors were borne before the corpse, which was
carried on a litter (_feretrum_). The common bier of the poor was called
_sandapila_, and its bearers _vespillones_, because they bore it forth
in the evening (_vespere_). The couches of the rich were of ivory,
richly ornamented with gold and purple. The relations walked behind in
mourning, sons with the head veiled, and daughters with dishevelled
hair. At the forum a funeral oration (_laudatio_) was delivered, and
thence the procession went to the place of burial or cremation. Those
who were buried (as all were subsequently to the 4th century A. D.) were
placed in a coffin (_arca_ or _loculus_), often of stone. The Assian
stone, from Assos in Troas, was said to consume all the body, with the
exception of the teeth, in forty days, whence it was called sarcophagus
(q.v.). For cremation the pyre, or _rogus_, was built like an altar, and
the corpse in its splendid couch being placed on the top, the nearest
relation, with averted face, fired a corner of the pile. Perfumes were
forbidden by the Twelve Tables. Sometimes animals were slaughtered, and
in ancient times, captives and slaves, but afterwards gladiators were
hired to fight round the blazing pile. (Compare BUSTUM.) When the pyre
was burnt down, the embers were soaked with wine, and the bones and
ashes collected into urns. (See URNA.) The solemnities continued for
nine days after the funeral, at the end of which time a sacrifice was
performed called the _novemdiale_. Men wore _black_ for mourning, and
women white; but at all banquets given in honour of the dead the guests
were clothed in white.
[Illustration: Fig. 340. Covered urn of red pottery. Ohojepore.]
=Funeral Urns= of Indian pottery are found of extremely ancient date.
That represented in Fig. 340 is a covered jar, of primitive make, with
an inscription in ancient characters; its date is probably from 260 to
240 B.C. (_Jacquemart._)
=Fur.= _Strutt_ says that “the furs of sables, beavers, foxes, cats, and
lambs were used in England before the Conquest; to which were afterwards
added those of ermines, squirrels, martens, rabbits, goats, and many
other animals.” In the Middle Ages the more precious furs, as ermine and
sable, were reserved for kings, knights, and the principal nobility of
both sexes. Inferior ranks used “vair” and “gris,” or gray; while
citizens, burgesses, and priests wore the common squirrel and
lamb-skins. The peasants wore cat-skins, badger-skins, &c. In after
times were added the skins of badgers, bears, beavers, deer, fitches,
foxes, foynes (or martens), grays, hares, otters, sables, squirrels,
weasels, wolves, &c. The mantles of our kings and peers, and the furred
robes of municipal officers are the remains of this fashion, which in
the 13th century was almost universal.
[Illustration: Fig. 341. Shield with Ermine.]
=Fur=, Her. The _furs_ are of comparatively rare appearance in heraldry,
and do not appear in the best ages. _Vair_ and _ermine_ are common. In
Fig. 341 is an example of the treatment of ermine from the monument of
Edward III.
=Furbelow=, O. E. An ornament on the petticoat of a woman’s dress,
described as a “puckered flounce,” to display which it became the
fashion to roll back the skirts of the gown. “The Old Mode and the New,
or the Country Miss with her Furbelow,” is the title of an old play,
_temp._ William and Mary.
=Furca=, R. A fork with two teeth (_bidens_), or two prongs; a hay-fork:
_furca carnarii_, a fork used for taking down the meat hung up in the
_carnarium_. The term _furca_ was further applied to a kind of fork by
aid of which a foot-traveller carried his baggage, but the more usual
name for this kind of fork was _ærumna_ (q.v.). Also, a wooden fork
placed for punishment across the shoulders of slaves and criminals, to
the prongs of which the hands were tied. Reversed it formed a cross upon
which criminals were executed, either by scourging or by crucifixion
with nailing. The patibulum was a similar instrument of punishment
formed like the letter H.
=Furgon=, O. E. (Fr. _fourgon_). A fork for putting faggots and sticks
on to the fire.
=Furnus=, R. (1) A baker’s oven. (2) A baker’s shop. (See FORNAX.)
=Fuschan in Appules=, O. E. Fustian of Naples. (See FUSTIAN.)
=Fuscina=, R. (1) A fork with three prongs used for spearing fish. (2)
The trident of the _retiarius_. Originally it was called _tridens_, and
used as a goad to drive horses. Neptune always carries one.
=Fuscinula= (dimin. of _Fuscina_, q.v.). A carving-fork.
=Fusée=, Fr. A gun with a wide bore, like a blunderbuss.
=Fusiform= (_fusus_, a spindle). In the form of a spindle.
[Illustration: Fig. 342. Fusil. Device of Philip of Burgundy (D. 1467).]
=Fusil=, Fr. The steel for striking fire from a flint; an ancient device
of the Dukes of Burgundy, the motto inculcating the worthlessness of
latent virtues never brought into action.
=Fusi-yama.= The sacred mountain of the Japanese, often depicted on
their porcelain.
=Fustian.= “A species of cotton cloth much used by the Normans,
particularly by the clergy, and appropriated to their chasubles.”
(_Strutt._) It was originally woven at Fustat, on the Nile, with a warp
of linen thread, and a woof of thick cotton, so twilled and cut that it
showed on one side a thick but low pile. In the 14th century Chaucer
says of his knight,—
“Of fustian he wered a gepon.”
In the 15th century Naples was celebrated for fustian. An old English
account of this date has “Fuschan in Appules” (for Fustian from Naples).
=Fustibalum=, R. A pole about four feet long, furnished with a sling
(_funda_) in the middle. It was wielded by both hands, and was used to
hurl huge stones to a distance.
=Fusus= (Gr. ἄτρακτος). A spindle. It was generally made of wood; but
some nations, as for instance the Egyptians, had spindles of pottery.
=Fygury=, O. E. An old name for silks _diapered_ with _figures_ of
flowers and fruit. A cope in the York fabric rolls is described “una
capa de sateyn fygury.”
[Illustration: Fig. 343. Fylfot.]
=Fylfot= or _Filfot_. This mysterious ornament exactly resembles the
Hindu _arani_ of remote antiquity, i. e. the instrument of wood by which
fire was obtained by friction; which is the symbol of _Agni_. This
symbol has never been lost, and occurs sixty times on an ancient Celtic
funereal urn; also on monumental brasses and church embroidery of the
Middle Ages. It is generally called the GAMMADION.