$H Ceadas or Caeadas.

Ceadas or Caeadas (<= /span>6,V*"H[=3Dkeadas] or 6"4V*"H[=3Dkaiadas]). A deep cave into which the Spart= ans thrust condemned prisoners.(1883m1)

$H Cechous. Or Khaiechis. Egypt

The Greek form of the Egyptian royal name Kakau, which see. (1876c1)

$H Cecili= a, St.

St. Cecilia was a Roman who lived in the reign of Alexander Severus. She was educated in the Christian faith by her parents, and being gifted with a genius for music she composed and sang hymns, and= is said to have invented the organ. She suffered martyrdom in Rome soon after her husband and his b= rother had been put to death for professing the Christian faith. The executioner sent to put her to death trembled so that he failed to carry out his purp= ose, and having wounded her left her to die. In early representations of St. Cecilia the saint appears simply holding a palm‑branch; after the 1= 5th century she is generally painted with her musical instruments, and from t= hat time she is regarded almost exclusively as the patroness of music.(1891a1= )

Cecilia, St. The patroness of music, and suppos= ed inventress of the organ; she suffered martyrdom by being plunged into a vessel of boiling oil. She is sometimes depicted with a gash in her neck,= and standing in a cauldron, but more frequently holding a model of an organ, = and turning her head towards heaven, as if listening to the music of the sphe= res. In the famous picture of Carlo Dolce, in the Dresden Gallery, she is represented as playing upon the organ, her attitude expressing maidenly grace, and her face heavenly inspiration. At Bologna is a "St. Cecilia listen= ing to the heavenly music," by Raffaelle, one of his finest works. Rubens h= as also painted a Cecilia, well known by the masterly engraving of Bolswert.= In the church of St. Cecilia, at Bologna, is a large fresco of scenes from t= he life of this saint, by Francia and his pupils, which, together with the representation of her marriage and burial, by his own hand alone, forms o= ne of his most remarkable productions, the fame of which led Raffaelle to pa= int the picture mentioned above, and send it to him. * The subject was a favourite one with many of the old painte= rs.

* A very b= eautiful statue of St. Cecilia Lying Dead," executed by Stefano Maderno, representing the body in the attitude in which it was found, is in the ch= urch dedicated to this saint at Rome; it is described and engraved in Sir Char= les Bell's Anatomy of Expression.= = (1855f1)

$H Ceilin= g. Architecture

Ceiling. (Arch.) T= he ceiling is the covering of a roof or floor, which hides its timbers from = the room below. It may be of timber or plaster. It is generally of the latter= in the present day. The timber ceilings of the Middle Ages, especially those= in churches, were often richly gilded and brilliant with colour. The use of plaster in ceilings came in with the revival of the classical style about= the time of James I.(1891a1)

$H Ceinture or Ceint. A girdle. (See CINCTUS.) (1883m1)

$H Celadon.

Celadon. A peculiar = tinted porcelain, described by Jacquemart as the earliest tint of Chinese potter= y.(1883m1)

Celadon. (Pot.) This term was originally applied only to t= he sea‑green colour upon old Oriental porcelain. Pieces of this colour are extremely r= are and of great antiquity. The term is now applied to all porcelain in which= the colour is mixed with the glaze and burnt in at the first firing.(1891a1)<= o:p>

Celadon. A term originally applied to the soft sea-green colour upon pieces of old Oriental porcelain. Ménage says the word was capriciously applied = by the ladies of the court of Louis le Grand, after the name of one of the principal characters of the once-famous Romance of Astrea. This term has since been applied in France to all tinted porcelain, of whatever colour it may be, when put upon the clay wet, and burnt in at the first baking, which process gives a peculiar softness to = the colour. **

** Marryatt= , History of Pottery and Porcelain= . = (1855f1)

$H Celebe= or Celebê.

Celebê. (5,8X$0[=3DKelebe]). A vase of ovoid form and with two= handles. The lower part is shaped elegantly, like an amphora, but the upper part resembles a pitcher with a sort of projecting lip. Its peculiarity is in = the handles, which we "pillared= " and "reeded."(1883m1)

Celebe. (Gk. 6= ,= 8= X= $= 0.[=3Dkeleb= e]) The name of certain Greek vases, elegant in form, with two handles and a foot. Some are quite plain while others have their surface richly decorated. ILLUS. celebe(1891a1)

Celebe. (Gr.) A vase, found chiefly in Etruria, distinguished by its peculiarly shaped handles, which are pillared, or reeded. Its form is shown in the annexed woodcut. FIGURE= (1855f1)

$H Celes.

Celes. R. A racing o= r saddle horse, as opposed to a draught horse. The same term was also applied to a vessel or boat of a peculiar form, propelled by oars, in which each rower handled only a single oar. It was also called celox.(1883m1)

$H Cella.

Cella. (Arch.) The sanctuary in ancient temples. Our illustration represents the plan of an ancient temple, and the part enclo= sed within black lines is the cella. A magazine or store room on the ground&#= 8209;floor of a Roman house. A name given to the separate chambers variously heated = in ancient baths. ILLUS. cella(1891a1)

Cella. R. (from celo, to hide). The interior of a temple, i.e. the part comprised within the four walls. In Fig. 145 a represents the portico, b the cella. The term is also us= ed to denote a niche, store‑room, or, in general, any kind of cellar; e.g= . cella vinaria, cella olearia, and even a tavern situated in a cellar. The te= rm was also applied to slaves' dormitories, the parts of the public baths, &c. Fig. 145. Plan of temple showing the Cella.(1883m1)

$H Cellae.

Cellae. (Lat.) The sanctuary for a statue of a deity in a temple; it was the most private and sacred portion of such buildings. (1855f1)

$H Cellatio.

Cellatio. A suite of apartments in a Roman house set apart for various purposes, but especiall= y as quarters for slaves.(1883m1)

$H Cellula.

Cellula (dimin. of C= ELLA, q.v.). A small sanctuary, i.e. the interior of a small temple, and by ana= logy any kind of small chamber.(1883m1)

$H Celox. (See CELES.) (1883m1)

$H Celt. A variety of chisels and adzes of t= he flint and bronze periods.(1883m1)

The term celt is applied to hatchets, adzes, and chisels= of stone, which were once used as implements in nearly every part of the wor= ld. It was long held that the instruments called celts were so termed because they were made by the Celtic nations. But this derivation has been given up, and it is now generally recognised that the word is only an anglicised form of the Latin celtis, a chisel. The period at = which they were used is so remote that for centuries a superstition has been in existence that celts were not= fashioned by human hands, but were in reality thunderbolts, and fell from heaven. In every part of the world they have been held in reverence as of supernatur= al origin, and called thunderbolts or lightning stones. Medical virtues have been ascribed to them. In some countries they are said to keep off the ca= ttle‑plague, in others to purify wells. They are generally made of flint, but sometime= s of quartz, porphyry, jasper, and other stones. In length they vary from two = to sixteen inches. They belong to what is called the Neolithic age, which carries us back to a time when the use of bronze and iron was unknown. Th= ey, as well as the moulds in which they were made, have been found in large numbers in every part of the globe.(1891a1)

Celt. A generic term used for a great variety of chisels and adzes of bronze or hard stone used by the semi-barbaric natio= ns of antiquity. The name is derived from "celtes," the ancient La= tin word for a chisel. In England, Ireland, and France, they are discovered in great quantities, together with moulds for casting them in metal; and seem to have been extensively used by northern nations= . (1855f1)

$H Celtic.

Celtic. That which belongs to, or is characteris= tic of, the northern tribes. (1855f1)<= o:p>

Celtic (Monuments) w= ere usually constructed of huge stories, and are known, for that reason, as megalithic monuments. Such are STANDING STONES, DOLMENS, MENHIRS or PEULVANS, CROMLECHS, COVERED ALLEYS, TUMULI, &c. (See these words.)(1883m1)

$H Cembel.

Cembel. A kind of jo= ust or HASTILUDE.(1883m1)

$H Cement= . Architecture

Cement. (Arch.) A= mixture of lime and some hard substance, thoroughly crushed, or of sand, puzzolan= a, and lime. It is used to bind solid bodies together.(1891a1)

--- $H Cement, Rom= an. Architecture

(Arch.) A cement obtained from the crushing of special stones. On being soaked in water it forms a soft paste, which rapidly har= dens in the air.(1891a1)

$H Cenaculo. [See Last Supper.] (1891a1)

$H Cendal, Sandal, &= c.

Cendal. A silk stuff, of which banners and rich vestments were m= ade in the Middle Ages.(1891a1)

Cendal, Sandal, &c., O.E. The name, variously spelt, = of a silken stuff used for vestments, and for banners, &c.; 13th century. = We now call this stuff sarcenet.= (1883m1)

$H Cene. Egypt

Cene. A chief town in the Heracleopolite nome of= the Heptanomos. (1876c1)

$H Cenotaph.

Cenotaph. A monument raised to the memory of a dead person, whose mortal remains are elsewhere.(1891a1)

Cenotaph. (6,<@‑JVN4@<[=3Dkeno‑taphion], i.e. an empty tomb). A monument raised to a Roman citizen who had been drowned at sea, or who, f= rom any other cause, failed to receive burial.(1883m1)

Cenotaph. (Gr.) A monument erected to a deceased person, but not containing the remains. Originally cenotaphs were raised for those only whose bones could not be found, who had perished at sea &c., or to one who died far away from = his native town. The tomb built by a man during his life-time for himself and family was called a CENOTAPH. We meet with these erections also in the mi= ddle ages, SARCOPHAGI being placed in churches in remembrance of those buried elsewhere. (1855f1)

$H Censer= .

Censer. A sacred vessel used for burning perfumes.(1883= m1)

Censer. A metal ve= ssel for burning incense. Over the cup where the incense burns is an ornamental op= en‑work cover, and the whole is supported by chains attached to the cup. In the Gothic period censers were decorated with mullioned openings. In the 17th= and 18th centuries the covers were often dome‑shaped, and the cups were ornamented with statuettes standing at the points where the chains were attached. ILLUS. censer<= /span>(1891a1)

Censer. A sacred vessel for burning perfumes. See THURIBLE. (1855f1)

$H Centaur.

Centaur. (Myth.) A fabulous being, half man, half horse, o= ften introduced by Egyptians, Etruscans, Greeks, and Romans into their basR= 09;reliefs, and forming the subject of numerous works of art. The artists of the Renaissance and modern times have also given us representations of this mythological figure, the human torso placed upon the body of a horse affording an opportunity for grandeur of line. Centaurs are sometimes represented on Greek vases with their fore feet human. The female centaur= was a later invention and is more rarely represented in works of art. = ILLUS. centaur(1891a1)

Centaur (6X<J"LD@H[=3Dkentauros], according to some, from = 6,<JXT[=3Dkenteo] and J"ØD@H[=3Dtauros], i.e. herdsman; but prob. simply fr= om 6,<JXT[=3Dkenteo], i.e. Piercer or Spearman). The Cen= taurs are represented with the body of a horse, and bust, head, and arms of a m= an. (Fig. 146.) In Christian archaeology, the Centaur is a symbol of the swift passage of life, the force of the instincts, and in a special sense, of adultery. The war of the Centaurs and the Lapithae is the subject of the frieze at the British Museum, from a tem= ple of Apollo in Arcadia. Hippocentaurs were half‑horse; Ono‑centaurs, half‑ass; and Bucentaurs or Tauro&#= 8209;centaurs, half‑ox.

Fig. 146. Centaur. Fig. 147. Centaur and young.(1883m1)

&nbs= p; &= nbsp;

Centaur. Fabulous beings frequently represented in ancient Art. They were believed= to have led a rude and savage life, originally among the mountains and fores= ts of Thessaly, and afterwards in Arcadia; having the head, arms, and trunk = of a human body joined to the body and legs of horse, just above the chest, wh= ich is the most ancient mode of representing them; and afterwards the entire = body and legs of the horse was added. The bas-reliefs of the battle of the Centaurs and Lapithae, on the frieze in the Br= itish Museum, from the Temple of Apollo, at Phigaleia in Arcadia, are illustrations of the employment of this monster in ancient Art; they frequently occur on Greek vases, and in the Pompeian paintings. The union= of the human body with that of the horse (hippocentaur) * probably wad the mythical mode of delineating the first horsemen of the Thessalonians, and their mastery in riding; female centau= rs were afterwards invented; and then was designed onocentaurs, being half h= uman half asinine; and bucentaurs (sometimes termed taurocentaurs), which were half human, the hinder half being the body of an ox.

* See cut illustrative of that word. (1855f1)

$H Cento.

Cento (6X<JDT<[=3Dkentron], patchwork). A covering made of di= fferent scraps of cloth, and used as clothing for slaves. The same term denotes a coarse cloth which was placed beneath the saddle of a beast of burden, to keep the back of the animal from being galled by the saddle. In Christian archaeology the term was used to denote a coarse patchwork garment, and, = by analogy, a poem composed of verses taken from various authors, like the Cento nuptialis of Ausonius.(1883m1)

$H Centre.

Centre. In geometr= y the centre is a point within the circumference of a circle, all lines drawn f= rom which to the circumference are equal. The term is also applied to the cen= tral point in a picture and to the spot in a painting where the effect of ligh= t is concentrated. Thus we speak of a luminous centre, or of a composition the centre of which is not distinctly marked. ILLUS. centre1.(1891a1)

Centre. A temporary structure of wood upon which arches are built. For small arches centres consist simply of pieces of wood cut to the curve of the arch and support= ed under it by props. For longer arches, such as tunnels, the centres are composed of several upright curved frames or ribs, joined together by narrow battens nailed across them horizontally and called laggings<= /i>; the whole being supported by struts resting either on the ground, or, if = the arch is high, on corbels introduced into the side walls. Between the top = of each strut and the rib which it supports is placed a pair of small wedges= of wood, which can be easily withdrawn. By this device it is possible to ease the centre before the mason= ry is quite set. The two wedges are driven slightly outwards, thus allowing the= rib to sink a little. This causes the whole of the arch to settle slightly and uniformly and to take its bearing, the mortar being compressed in the joi= nts. When the mortar has completely set, the centres are removed together. ILLUS. centre2(1891a1)

$H Centunculus.

Centunculus (dimin. = of CENTO, q.v.). A motley garment of various colours, like that of our harlequin. It was worn, according to Apuleius, by the actors who played in burlesques, and there are certain vases on which Bacchus is represented, arrayed in a similar costume.(1883m1)

$H Centurion.

Centurion. An officer of the Roman army whose pay doubled that of an ordinary soldier. He was known by letters on the crest= of his helmet; and may be distinguished in antique sculpture as carrying a r= od or staff in his hand, with which he might punish his men; he had also the privilege of remitting services in soldiers on the payment of a fine by t= hem. He was elected from the body he afterwards ruled, by the military tribune= s; the number of men he commanded varied from thirty to a hundred. (1855f1)<= /span>

$H Cepotaphium.

Cepotaphium (= 60B@‑JVN4@<[=3Dkepo‑taphion]). A tomb situated in a garden.(1883m1)

$H Cera.

Cera (akin to 60D`H[=3Dkeros]). Wax, and, by analogy, any objects = made of wax, such as images of the family ancestors (imagines majorum); or the wax tablets for writing on with the= stylus. These were called respec= tively cerae duplices, triplices, quintuplices, according as they had two, three, or five leave= s. The first, second, third, and last tablet were called respectively prima, secunda, tertia, = ultima or extrema cera.(1883m1)

$H Ceramic. Appertaining to POTTERY (q.v.).(1883m1)

Ceramic. The ceramic art is the art of manufacturing objects of a= ll sorts in every kind of clay. and of decorating= them by means of painting or modelling or both. The differ= ence in the quality of clay and the variety of decorative processes have given rise to a variety of products. Under the general name of ceramics we include (1) bricks, tiles, terra‑cotta, and common pottery; (2) faïences; (3) stone‑ware; (4) porcelain. The ceramic art occup= ies in consequence a very important place among the decorative arts. It is al= lied to architecture on the one hand, and to painting and sculpture on the oth= er. [Pottery.](1891a1)

Ceramic. A Greek term applied to the plastic art= s, including vases, bassi-relievi, cornices, and pottery in general, from the most delicate china to the coarsest clay. (1855f1)

$H Ceramo= graphy. <= span lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'mso-ansi-language:EN-GB'>

Ceramography. The historical and technical study of the ceramic art.(1891a1)

$H Cerber= us.

The three‑head= ed dog who guarded the gates of hell.(1883m1)

The three‑headed dog which guarded the entrance to Hades. He fawned on those who entered, but showed his teeth to those who went out. Representations of him are fo= und on painted vases.(1891a1)

Cerberus. The triple-headed dog which the ancien= ts fabled to be the guardian of the gates of hell. (1855f1)

$H Cercasora. Egypt

Cercasora. A chief city of the Latopolite nome, West = of the Nile, in Lower Egypt. (1876c1)

$H Cercurus.

Cercurus (6XD6@LD@H[=3Dkerkouros], perhaps from 5XD6LD"[=3DKerkura], the island Corcyra). A Cyprian vessel propelled by oars. Its form is unknown.(1883m1)

$H Cerebrerium.

Cerebrerium. An iron= skull‑cap, temp. Edward I.(1883m1)<= /o:p>

$H Cere‑cloth.

Cere‑cloth (cera, wax). Cloth saturated with= wax, used for enveloping a consecrated altarstone, or a dead body.(1883m1)

Cere-cloth. A cloth saturated with wax, and used= for enveloping a consecrated altar-stone, or a dead body. (1855f1)

$H Ceres. [S= ee Demeter.] (1891a1)

$H Cereus.

Cereus (cera, wax). A wax candle, made either with the fibres of cype= rus or papyrus twisted together and dipped in wax, or with the pith of elder,= or rush, covered with the same material.(1883m1)

$H Ceriolare.

Ceriolare (cera, wax). A stand, holder, or candelabrum for wax candles. There were a great varie= ty of this kind of vessel. (See CANDELABRUM.)(1883m1)<= /p>

Ceriolaria. <= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'>

Ceriolaria. (Lat.) A name under which CANDELABRA are sometimes mentioned in Roman inscriptio= ns. (1855f1)

$H Cernuus.

Cernuus (from cer =3D 6VD", and n= uo, i.e. with head inclined to the ground). A tumbler who walks upon his hands with his feet in the air. Women even used to turn series of summersaults, resting alternately on the feet and hands, among a number of swords or kn= ives stuck in the ground. This exhibition was called by the Greeks ,ÆH[=3Deis] :"P"\D"H[=3Dmachairas] 6L$4FJ<[=3Dkubistan], i.e. lit. to tumble head over he= els between knives).(1883m1)

$H Cerogr= aphy.

Cerography. Painting on wax.(1891a1)

$H Ceroma.

Ceroma (6ZDT:"[=3Dkeroma], a wax‑salve). A room in which wrestlers rubbed themselves over with oil and fine sand. The room was so named from the unguent employed, which consisted of wax mixed with oil [w= hich was also called ceroma].(1883= m1)

$H Ceroplastic or Cero‑plastic.

Cero‑plastic. = The art of modelling in wax.(1883m1)

Ceroplastic. The art of modelling in wax. This art was practised by the ancients and by artists of the Renaissance, whose wax figures were often coloured and heightened in effect with gold tints. Amo= ng the finest specimens of ceroplastic are Michael Angelo's studies, which a= re to be seen in the South= Kensington Museum. The art was cultivated until the end of the 18th century, and Benoit's portrait of Louis XIV. is a justly celebrated masterpiece. In spite of occasional attempts to revive it in our own cent= ury it has practically died out from an artistic point of view. It is now principally used for scientific purposes, such as the construction of ana= tomical figures, many of which are to be seen in museums of anatomy. Modern waxwo= rk exhibitions have no connection whatever with art.(1891a1)

Ceroplastic. (Lat.) The art of modelling in wax. It was practised by the Greeks and the Romans particularly in portraiture. In recent excavations undertaken in the sepulchres at Naples the faces and heads of the deceased were found modelled in wax. The art of constructing anatomical preparations in wax originated at Bologna in the early half of the seventeenth century, and is now extensively practised in museums of morbid anatomy; the finest in England being at Guy's Hospital, Southwark. (1855f1)

$H Cerostrotum, Cero‑strotum, or Cestrotum= .

Cero‑strotum or Cestrotum. Lat. A kind of encaustic painting upon ivory or horn, in which the li= nes were burnt in with the cestrum, and the furrows filled with wax.(1883m1)<= o:p>

Cerostrotum. A method of encaustic painting on ivory, in which furrows were cut in the ivory with a heated cestrum or etching needle, and then filled up with wax. This = is the explanation generally given of the process, but the whole subject is shrouded in obscurity.(1891a1)

Cerostrotum, or Cestrotum. (Lat.) A kind of encaustic painting upon ivory or horn, in whi= ch the lines of the design were burnt-in with the CESTRUM, and wax introduce= d in the furrows made by the heated instrument. (1855f1)

$H Certosina Work.

Certosina Work. Florence, 15th century. Ivory inlaid into solid cypress= ‑wood and walnut. The style is Indian in character, and consists in geometric arrangements of stars made of diamond‑shaped pieces, varied with conventional flowers in pots, &c.(1883m1)

$H Certyl.

Certyl. Old English = for kirtle.(1883m1)

$H Cerule= an.

Cerulean. (Paint.) = Azure‑tinted, of a fine transparent blue colour.(1891a1)

$H Ceruse= .

Ceruse. A name for white lead. (See CARBONATE OF LEAD.)(1883m1)

Ceruse. (Paint.) = Pure carbonate of lead, out of which the pigment ceruse or white lead is manufactured.(1891a1)

Ceruse, commonly called WHITE-LEAD, is a carbonate of lead, the basis of = white oil-paint. It is also called flake-white, krems, N= ottingham white, &c. Although used to a greater extent as a pigment than any ot= her material, like all other preparations of lead, it is easily acted upon by exhalations from sewers, coals, &c., containing sulphurated hydrogen, which rapidly destroy its white colour, frequently changing it to a dull leaden hue. It is not prudent to mix it with VERMILION, or any other pigm= ent containing sulphur. It has lately been proposed to substitute the white o= xide of zinc as a permanent white pigment. (1855f1)

$H Cervel= as. <= span lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'mso-ansi-language:EN-GB'>

Red marble veined with white.(1891a1)<= /p>

$H Cervelliere. (See CEREBRERIUM.) (1883m1)<= /h1>

$H Cervi.

Cervi (lit. stags). = Large branches of trees with the forks still left upon them, but cut down close= to the stock, so that the whole presented the appearance of a stag's antlers= . Cervi were employed to strengthe= n a palisade, so as to impede the advance of infantry, or resist attacks of cavalry.(1883m1)

$H Cervical.

Cervical (from cervix, a neck). A cushion or pi= llow for supporting the back of the head on a bed or dining‑couch. (See PULVINAR.)(1883m1)

$H Cervus. (See STAG.) (1883m1)

$H Ceryceum.

Ceryceum (60Db6,4@<[=3Dkerukeion], a herald's staff). It is a syno= nym of CADUCEUS (q.v.).(1883m1)

$H Cesticillus.

Cesticillus (dimin. = of CESTUS, q.v.). A circular pad used as a rest by persons who had to carry burdens on their heads.(1883m1)

$H Cestra. (See CESTROSPHENDONE.) (1883= m1)

$H Cestrosphendonê.

Gr. (a dart‑sl= ing.) A dart fixed to a wooden stock with three short wooden wings, discharged fr= om a sling.(1883m1)

$H Cestrotum. (See CEROSTROTUM.) (1883m1)<= /h1>

$H Cestrum or Viriculum.

Cestrum or Viriculum. (6XFJD@<[=3Dkestron], i.e. that which pricks or pierces= ). A graver used in the process of encaustic painting on ivory. It was made of ivory, pointed at one end and flat at the other. (See CEROSTROTUM, RHABDION.)(1883m1)

Cestrum (Lat.) GRAPHIS (Gr.) The style (vericulum) or spatula used in th= e two kinds of encaustic painting practised by the ancients, viz., wax and ivory encaustic. When they began to adorn their war-ships with paintings, a thi= rd kind of encaustic painting was introduced, in which the colours were melt= ed by the aid of heat, and applied with a brush. The CESTRUM was made of ivo= ry, pointed at one end, and flat at the other. (1855f1)

$H Cestus.

Cestus. (6,FJÎH[=3Dkestos], embroidered). (1) In general any k= ind of band or tie; but specially the embroidered girdle of Venus. (2) A boxing gauntlet. (See CAESTUS.)(1883m1)

Cestus. The cestus w= as the boxing‑glove of the Romans. It consisted of a thong of leather wound round and round the hand and wrist. Sometimes the leather was studded with iron bosses, which rendered the cestus a dangerous weapon. Representation= s of boxers armed with the cestus are very common in Roman art. ILLUS. cestus(1891a1)

Cestus. (Lat.) Thongs of leather roun= d the hands and arms, worn by boxers for offence and defence, to render their b= lows more powerful. The cestus was introduced when athletics were generally practised, and the name is Roman. It was a stronger defence than the himantes of the ancient Greeks; = the simple thongs of leather were still used occasionally in boxing, and in t= he exercises of the Agonistae, and were called melichai, because the blows they gave were less formidable th= an those of the cestus. There are many kinds of cestus; in some, the thongs = of leather are studded with nails, or loaded with lead or iron; sometimes me= tal rings surrounded the fist, as represented in our engraving from the antiq= ue, which resembles the modern quoit<= /i>, and which inflicted the most frightful blows, and were sometimes appropri= ately termed "limb-breakers." The barbarism which always clung to the Roman character throughout every period of the history of that people, and every phase of their career, is in no instance more repulsive than when s= een thus disgustingly depicted in their amusements. Works of ancient Art abou= nd, in which the cestus is represented. * FIGURE

* See Ingh= irami's Monumenti Etruschi, Piroli and Piranesi's Antichità d'Erc= olano; Tassie's Pierres Gravées; Clarac's Musée de Sculpt. = anc. et mod.(1855f1)

$H Cetra.

Cetra (prob. a Spani= sh word). A small round shield in use among several barbarous nations, but n= ever by the Romans.(1883m1)