Pyx

In Christianity, vessel containing the consecrated bread used in the service of Holy Communion. Although pyxes were made in various shapes, such as that of a dove, the most common form was that of a small, cylindrical box fitted with a cover, which is generally conical. An English pyx dating from the first half of the 14th century, known as the Godsfield Pyx, is of gilt bronze

Switzerland, Prehistoric Switzerland

Though a hand wedge fashioned by Paleolithic hunters, found at Pratteln near Basel in 1974, is at least 350,000 years old, human habitation in Switzerland was not significant until the last glacial period, the Würm, approximately 30,000 years ago. At that time most of the land was covered by ice, many thousands of feet deep that flowed down from the Alps. But during interglacial periods

Term

In the visual arts, element consisting of a sculptured figure or bust at the top of a stone pillar or column that usually tapers downward to a quadrangular base. Often the pillar replaces the body of the figure, with feet sometimes indicated at its base. The pillar itself may be a separate object (i.e., a pedestal for the head or other sculpture), in which case it is called a

Bulgakov, Mikhail Afanasyevich

Beginning his adult life as a doctor, Bulgakov gave up medicine for writing. His first major work was the novel Belaya gvardiya (The White Guard), serialized in 1925 but never published in book form. A realistic and

Soleus Muscle

A flat, broad muscle of the calf of the leg lying just beneath the gastrocnemius muscle. It arises from the upper portions of the tibia and fibula, the bones of the lower leg, and then joins with the gastrocnemius to attach via the Achilles tendon at the heel. Its major action is flexion of the ankle joint, particularly when the leg is bent at the knee, thereby extending the