Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Bontemps, Arna, 1902–73, African-American writer, b. Alexandria, La. He is best remembered as the author of the novel God Sends Sunday (1931), the basis of the play St. Louis Woman (1946); and of Bl...

(Encyclopedia) chiaroscuro kyärōsko͞oˈrō [key] [Ital.,=light and dark], term once applied to an early method of printing woodcuts from several blocks and also to works in black and white or monotone. Today it i...

(Encyclopedia) Hampshire sheep, large sheep bred originally in Hampshire, England, by crossing Southdowns, Cotswolds, and other breeds. Hampshires are large in size and hornless, have black faces and legs, and are c...

(Encyclopedia) Kewanee kĭwäˈnē [key], industrial city (1990 pop. 12,969), Henry co., NW Ill.; inc. 1855. It is a regional livestock, processing, trade, and shipping center. Manufactures include boilers, metal pr...

(Encyclopedia) Turpin, Dick, 1706–39, English robber. After a short and brutal career of horse stealing and general crime he was hanged at York. The fame—or notoriety—that he later achieved derives mainly from...

(Encyclopedia) rutile, mineral, one of three forms of titanium dioxide (TiO2; see titanium). It occurs in crystals, often in twins or rosettes, and is typically brownish red, although there are black varieties. Ruti...

(Encyclopedia) Poplar Bluff, city (1990 pop. 16,996), seat of Butler co., SE Mo., in the Ozark foothills, on the low bluffs of the Black River near the Ark. line; inc. 1870. It is a trade, shipping, and medical cent...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Black mustard, Brassica nigra mustard, common name for the Cruciferae, or Brassicaceae, a large family chiefly of herbs of north temperate regions. The easily distinguished flowers of the Cruc...

(Encyclopedia) Detroit dĭtroitˈ [key], city (2020 pop. 639,111), seat of Wayne co., SE Mich., on the Detro...

(Encyclopedia) cherry, name for several species of trees or shrubs of the genus Prunus (a few are sometimes classed as Padus) of the family Rosaceae (rose family) and for their fruits. The small, round red to black ...