EMBLEMENTS 



the pages of old missals, Bibles, 

 etc., are full of such representa- 

 tions. It has been estimated that 

 the emblems of the saints number 

 over 800, or including variant 

 forms, over 3,000. ,"'- 



Among the commonest are the 

 keys of S. Peter, the sword of S. 

 Paul, the spiked wheel of S. 

 Catherine, the lamb of S. John 

 Baptist, the lion of S. Jerome, the 

 dragon of S. George, the X-shaped 

 cross of S. Andrew, the serpent of 

 S. Patrick, the arrows of S. Sebas- 

 tian. For the most part these 

 objects are emblematic of the death 

 suffered by the saint, or of miracles 

 attributed to him. 



Emblems are also given to 

 various virtues and religious con- 

 ceptions, e.g. the hand, marked 

 with a cross or sacred heart, is 

 found to stand for labour; a globe, 

 surmounted by a cross and rest- 

 ing on a heart, for the reign of love 

 and concord on earth; a lily for 

 purity and the Virgin Mary. The 

 patriarchs, prophets, and sibyls 

 have their emblems, as Adam with 

 a spade, Moses with the tables of 

 the law, David with harp or sling, 

 or Sibylla Agrippina with a 

 scourge. An early emblem of 

 Christ was a fish, the letters of the 

 Gr. ichthus, fish, standing for Jesus 

 Christ Son of God the Saviour. 

 During the 15th century, when 

 heraldry was at its height, armorial 

 bearings incorporating many em- 

 blems were devised for almost 100 

 saints. See Hagiology. 



Bibliography. Emblems of Saints, 

 F. C. Husenbleth, 3rd ed. 1882; 

 Symbols and Emblems of Early and 

 Mediaeval Christian Art, L. Twin- 

 ing, new ed. 1885 ; Saints and their 

 Emblems, M. Drake, 1916. 



Emblements (old Fr. emblae- 

 ment, harvest; late Lat. imbla- 

 dare, to sow). Term used in Eng- 

 lish law for certain rights of the 

 tenants of a manor, e.g. the right 

 to cut timber for the repair of the 

 house and fences. 



Embolism (Gr. embolos, stop- 

 per, plug). Obstruction of a blood- 

 vessel by material which has been 

 carried along in the blood -stream. 

 The commonest cause of embolism 

 is detachment of a blood-clot or 

 portion of a blood-clot which has 

 formed in a vein. Other substances 

 which may form emboli are 

 portions of growths on the heart- 

 valves resulting from endocarditis, 

 calcareous material from degener- 

 ated vessels, pieces of tumours, fat, 

 masses of bacteria, and air bubbles. 

 Embolism of a coronary artery 

 may cause sudden death ; embol- 

 ism of the brain may lead to 

 paralysis ; embolism affecting the 

 main blood supply to a limb leads 

 to sudden pain, swelling, and pulse- 



lessness, followed by gangrene in 

 some cases and by recovery in others 

 where other vessels enlarge and 

 replace the blocked circulation. 

 If the embolus contains infective 

 micro-organisms, as, for instance, 

 when it has been broken off from a 

 septic clot, the result is often to 

 set up an abscess where it lodges. 

 Air may accidentally find entrance 

 into the blood-stream during opera- 

 tions involving the large veins of the 

 neck, and when the bubbles reach 

 the heart they become churned up 

 with the blood, leading to dilatation 

 of the heart and sudden death. 



Embossing (Fr. em, in; bosse, 

 hump). In architecture, ornament- 

 ing a surface with decorative work 

 in relief, obtained by hammering, 

 stamping, or other mechanical 

 force on metal or stone. Reliefs 

 obtained by carving or casting 

 cannot be termed embossed work. 

 See Architecture. 



Embouchure (Fr. em, in ; 

 bouche, mouth). In music, the part 

 of a wind instrument through 

 which it is blown. It is also used 

 for the adjustment of the player's 

 lips, teeth, and tongue to the 

 mouthpiece of his instrument. 

 Upon this adjustment depend the 

 pitch, quality, and power of the 

 tone produced. See Mouthpiece. 



Embowed. In heraldry any 

 charge which is bent, as an arm or 

 a curved dolphin, is said to be em- 

 fa o w e d. A 

 human limb is 

 sometimes said 

 to be "flexed." 

 E m b r a- 

 cery. InEng- 

 1 i s h law, an 

 attempt, 



whether s u c- 

 Embowed in heraldry ^^ Qr not> 



to influence a jury in favour of one 

 party to a trial, whether by pro- 

 mise, persuasion, monetary bribery, 

 treating, or the like. The person 

 who attempts to so influence a 

 jury is called an embraceor; and 

 the same term is applied to one 

 who comes into court to overawe a 

 jury, or for reward, and speaks in 

 favour of one party. It is a mis- 

 demeanour punishable by fine and 

 imprisonment. The word is de- 

 rived from old Fr. embracer (mod. 

 embraser), to set on fire, excite ; to 

 embrace, meaning to clasp in the 

 arms, is from Fr. em, in ; bras, 

 arm (Lat. bracchium). 



Embrasure (Fr., aperture with 

 sloping sides). Military term for 

 the opening made or left in the 

 parapet of a defensive work for a 

 gun to be trained and fired through. 



Embrocation (Gr. embroche, 

 fomentation). Medicinal prepara- 

 tion intended to be rubbed into the 

 skin. It is also known as liniment. 



EMBROIDERY 



Embroidery. Art of decoration 

 by means of needle and thread. 

 Its practice is of the highest anti- 

 quity. There are references to it in 

 the description of the Tabernacle, 

 and Ezekiel (xxvii, 7) mentions 

 " fine linen with broidered work 

 from Egypt." Phrygia and ancient 

 Babylon were renowned for their 

 embroideries. The art was well 

 known in ancient Greece, and to 

 Greek workmanship of the 4th 

 century is attributed one of the 

 oldest specimens extant, in the 

 Hermitage, Petrograd. The ground 

 is purple cloth, upon which is sewn 

 a palmette ornament in green and 

 yellow. 



In Christian times embroidery be- 

 came the handmaid of the Church, 

 and so the most ancient examples 

 are ecclesiastical vestments. These 

 were most ornate in very early 

 times, for we learn of a Christian 

 senator of Rome in the 4th cen- 

 tury whose robe was decorated 

 with no fewer than 600 figures 

 representing incidents in the life of 

 Christ. The oldest existing vest- 

 ments are those at Aries, which 

 date from the 6th century. In Dur- 

 ham Cathedral are a stole and 

 maniple, found on the body of S. 

 Cuthbert. Of ancient vestments, 

 perhaps the most beautiful is the 

 dalmatic in the Vatican reputed to 

 be that of Charlemagne, but now 

 attributed to the llth century. 

 One example of medieval embroi- 

 dery that stands alone is the 

 Bayeux Tapestry (q.v. ). 



In the 13th century English 

 embroideries were without equal 

 and the " Opus Anglicanum " was 

 eagerly sought after. Matthew 

 Paris states that in 1246 the pope, 

 astonished at the number and mag- 

 nificence of the vestments worn 

 by the English bishops, sent letters 

 to the English abbots urging them 

 to procure a quantity for him. 

 Apparently one of the characteris- 

 tics of early English embroidery 

 was the amount of gold, pearls, and 

 precious stones. Examples of mag- 

 nificent early English copes are 

 exhibited in Ascoli-Piceno, Pienza, 

 Anagni, Madrid, Toledo, South 

 Kensington, and elsewhere. French 

 and German embroidery reached a 

 high pitch of excellence during the 

 13th and 14th centuries, as did also 

 the Italian ateliers in Milan and 

 Florence. These developed a real- 

 istic style which in the 16th cen- 

 tury was characteristic of Italian 

 work. In the 15th century English 

 embroidery deteriorated. 



In W. Europe, embroidery was 

 both a professional and amateur 

 handicraft. In the Middle Ages 

 the lady of the castle during the 

 absence of her lord on warlike 

 or hunting expeditions passed her 



