MINIATURE

Miniature

The word miniature, derived from the Latin minium, red lead, is a picture in an ancient or medieval illuminated manuscript; the simple decoration of the early codices having been miniated or delineated with that pigment. The generally small scale of the medieval pictures has led secondly to an etymological confusion of the term with minuteness and to its application to small paintings especially portrait miniatures, which did however grow from the same tradition and at least initially use similar techniques.

The above text is a snippet from Wikipedia: Miniature (illuminated manuscript)
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miniature

Noun

  1. Greatly diminished size or form; reduced scale.
  2. A small version of something; a model of reduced scale.
    There was a miniature of a whaling ship in a glass bottle over the mantlepiece.
  3. A small, highly detailed painting, a portrait miniature.
  4. The art of painting such highly detailed miniature works.
  5. An illustration in an illuminated manuscript.
  6. A musical composition which is short in duration.
    Sacha composed a miniature for strings as a final project at the conservatory.
  7. A token in a game representing a unit or character.
    Jack had dozens of miniatures of Napoleonic footsoldiers painted in detailed period regalia for his wargames.
  8. Lettering in red; rubric distinction.
  9. A particular feature or trait.

Adjective

  1. Smaller than normal.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: miniature
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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