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Puccini, Giacomo

(Encyclopedia)Puccini, Giacomo jäˈkōmō po͞ot-chēˈnē [key], 1858–1924, Italian composer of operas. He wrote some of the most popular works in the opera repertory. A descendant of a long line of musicians, ...

Outer Banks

(Encyclopedia)Outer Banks or the Banks, chain of sand barrier islands and peninsulas, c.175 mi (280 km), along the Atlantic coast of SE Va. and E N.C. Separated by inlets and enclosing several saltwater lagoons, or...

Storm King Art Center

(Encyclopedia)Storm King Art Center, sculpture park and museum in Mountainville, N.Y., some 55 mi (89 km) north of New York City. Founded in 1960, it comprises 500 acres (202 hectares) of lawns, fields, hills, and ...

tattoo

(Encyclopedia)tattoo, the marking of the skin with punctures into which pigment is rubbed. The word originates from the Tahitian tattau [to mark]. The term is sometimes extended to scarification, which consists of ...

body-marking

(Encyclopedia)body-marking, painting, tattooing, or scarification (cutting or burning) of the body for ritual, esthetic, medicinal, magic, or religious purposes. Evidence from prehistoric burials, rock carvings, an...

Boleslaus I

(Encyclopedia)Boleslaus I bōˈləslôs [key], c.966–1025, Polish ruler (992–1025), the first to call himself king; also called Boleslaus the Brave. He succeeded his father, Mieszko I, as duke of Poland, seized...

Bingham, George Caleb

(Encyclopedia)Bingham, George Caleb, 1811–79, American painter and politician, b. Augusta co., Va. His family moved (1819) to Missouri, which was the site of most of Bingham's activities. In 1837 he studied for a...

Howells, William Dean

(Encyclopedia)Howells, William Dean, 1837–1920, American novelist, critic, and editor, b. Martins Ferry, Ohio. Both in his own novels and in his critical writing, Howells was a champion of realism in American lit...

Tintoretto

(Encyclopedia)Tintoretto tēntōrĕtˈtō [key], 1518–94, Venetian painter, whose real name was Jacopo Robusti. Tintoretto is considered one of the greatest painters in the Venetian tradition. He was called Il Ti...

Mellon, Paul

(Encyclopedia)Mellon, Paul, 1907–99, American philanthropist and art collector, b. Pittsburgh. The son of Andrew W. Mellon, he attended Yale (B.A., 1929) and Clare College, Cambridge (A.B., 1931). He worked brief...