NUMMULITE 



4312 



NUREMBERG 



Hare KnglUh Coin* 



Rare Canadian Coins 



NUMMULITE, num'ulitc, a genus of fossils 

 whose name was suggested by their resemblance 

 to coins. The word is derived from the Latin 

 nummus, meaning money. Nummulites are cir- 

 cular, coin-shaped bodies, varying in size from 

 the merest speck to a half-dollar. The shell is 

 composed of a series of small cavities arranged 

 in the form of a spiral, and having partitions 

 communicating with one another by means of 

 small internal openings; there is no apparent 

 outer opening. There are in various parts of 

 the world limestone formations, sometimes sev- 

 eral hundred feet thick, which consist of these 

 fossil shells, and the Egyptian Pyramids are 

 built largely of them. Nummulites were abun- 

 dant in the early part of the Cenozoic Era (see 

 GEOLOGY). 



NUN, in the Roman Catholic Church, is the 

 name given to a woman who renounces the 

 world, enters a religious community and de- 

 votes her life to religious service, mainly 

 through works of mercy and charity. The word 

 ia supposed to have originated in a Coptic 

 (Christian Egyptian) word meaning pure. 

 There are many orders of nuns, with various 

 missions in life. Some care for the sick and 

 wounded, others protect the aged and the 

 friendless, while still others engage in educa- 

 tional work; but the vows in all these orders 

 are very similar. The first convent for women 

 was founded about A. D. 250 by a sister of Saint 

 Anthony, in the Egyptian desert; the first one 

 in England was founded by Eadbald, king of 

 Kent, at Folkstone in 630. See MONASTICISM. 



NUNC DIMITTIS, nungk dimit'is, the rap- 

 turous psalm of Simeon, in Luke II, 29-32, ut- 

 tered at sight of the babe Jesus when he 

 was presented at the Temple. The name was 

 derived from the first two words in the Latin 

 version, meaning "Now lettest thou depart." 



It has been in use as a part of Christian eve- 

 ning worship since the fifth century. 



NUNCIO, nun'tshio, a Roman Catholic offi- 

 cial corresponding to an ambassador or minister 

 who represents a temporal state at a foreign 

 capital. Nuncios, who are representatives of 

 the Pope, arc maintained in Vienna, Madrid, 

 Lisbon, Bavaria, Belgium and Brazil. Officials 

 having the same powers as nuncios, but inferior 

 rank, are known as intt rnuncios. The latter are 

 maintained in Chile and the Argentine Repub- 

 lic. See LEGATE. 



NU'REMBERG, one of the quaintest and 

 most interesting cities of Germany, particularly 

 famous as the world's manufacturing center for 

 all kinds of children's toys made in metal. It 

 presents a faithful picture of the well-to-do 

 town of three hundred years ago, with its moats 

 and many-towered walls; its curious gateways; 

 its royal castle, perched high above the city ; its 

 narrow, crooked streets, lined with houses whose 

 gables turn toward these streets; its bridges, 

 spanning the Pegnitz River, which divides it 

 into two parts; its quiet market place, and its 

 many beautiful fountains. The city's numerous 

 churches and charitable, educational, scientific 

 and artistic institutions are all on a scale 

 worthy of its ancient dignity, for Nuremberg is 

 regarded as the nursery of German poetry and 

 the cradle of German art. 



There Adam Krafft carved his famous stone 

 tabernacle ; there Peter Vischer and his sons 

 worked to produce their masterpiece, the shrine 

 of Saint Sebald; there lived Albrecht Diirer, 

 the evangelist of art, and his home is still 

 pointed out with great pride. Nuremberg was 

 the first city in Germany to found a gymna- 

 sium, a sort of secondary school for the people. 

 In 1500, Peter Hemlein invented watches, first 

 known as "Nuremberg eggs." The first paper 

 mill in Germany was established there, and 

 printing was early introduced on a large scale. 



The old proverb, "Nuremberg's hand goes 

 through every land," is true, for, though not 

 now of such great relative importance as of 

 yore, this enterprising city in Bavaria, ninety- 

 five miles north of Munich, continues to occupy 

 a high place among the industrial and commer- 

 cial centers of Europe. Nuremberg is still the 

 center of the great toy industry of Germany. 

 In the city are made most of the toys which 

 gladden the hearts of children the world over, 

 especially the famous tin soldiers, and every 

 conceivable kind of toy pinched or shaped out 

 of metal. These, together with the carved 

 wood, ivory, etc., are known as the famous 



