Definition of Abaculus

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Abaculus
(n.)
A small tile of glass, marble, or other substance, of various colors, used in making ornamental patterns in mosaic pavements.
  

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Abaculus definition was found in categories: Arts & Humanities(1)  Language, Idioms & Slang(1)  Encyclopedia(1)  

Abaculus Definition from Arts & Humanities Dictionaries & Glossaries

JM Latin-English Dictionary
abaculus
N M
tessera/small cube of colored glass for ornamental pavements/wall mosaics


Abaculus Definition from Language, Idioms & Slang Dictionaries & Glossaries

hEnglish - advanced version
abaculus

abaculus
\a*bac"u*lus\ (&adot;b*ăk"&usl;*lŭs), n.; pl. abaculi (-lī). [l., dim. of abacus.] (arch.) a small tile of glass, marble, or other substance, of various colors, used in making ornamental patterns in mosaic pavements.



Abaculus Definition from Encyclopedia Dictionaries & Glossaries

Wikipedia English - The Free Encyclopedia
Tessera
Abaciscus redirects here. For the moth genus, see Abaciscus (moth).
Tessella redirects here. For the moth genus, see Tessella (moth).

1. A tessera (plural: tesserae, diminutive tessella) is an individual tile in a mosaic, usually formed in the shape of a cube. Also known as an abaciscus, abaculus, or, in Persian کاشي معرق.

In antiquity, mosaics were formed from naturally colored pebbles, but by 200 BCE purpose-made tesserae were being used. Marble or limestone was cut into small cubes that were arranged into the design. Later, tesserae were made from colored glass, or clear glass backed with metal foils. The Byzantines used tesserae with gold leaf, in which case the glass pieces were flatter, with two glass pieces sandwiching the gold. This produced a golden reflection emanating from in between the tesserae, causing a richer and more luminous effect.


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