Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Sífnos sĭfˈnəs [key], island, c.32 sq mi (83 sq km), SE Greece, in the Aegean Sea; one of the Cyclades. It is a resort area and produces olive oil. In ancient times it had gold and silver mines. ...

(Encyclopedia) proconsul, in ancient Rome, governor of a province. He was in sole charge of the army, of justice, and of administration in his province and could not be prosecuted for maladministration until his off...

(Encyclopedia) Philemon fīlēˈmən [key], c.360–c.265 b.c., Greek poet of the New Comedy. He was in ancient times considered second only to Menander. Fragments of his plays, originally numbering 97, survive. ...

(Encyclopedia) Kadesh –bärnēˈə [key], oasis in the desert S of ancient Palestine, mentioned frequently in the Bible, notably as a limit of Edom. Another biblical name is En-mishpat. ...

(Encyclopedia) Samothrace sämōthräˈkē [key], island (1991 pop. 3,083), c.71 sq mi (184 sq km), NE Greece, in the Aegean Sea. The main town is Samothrace, or Samothráki, located on the northwest shore. The isla...

(Encyclopedia) Mantinea mănˌtĭnēˈə [key], city of ancient Greece, in E central Arcadia (now Arkadhía). In the Peloponnesian War a coalition led by Mantinea and Argos and urged on by Athens was defeated (418 b...

(Encyclopedia) incense, perfume diffused by the burning of aromatic gums or spices. Incense was used in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome and is mentioned in the Old and the New Testaments. It is also found in the maj...

(Encyclopedia) Pydna pĭdˈnə [key], ancient town of Pieria, S Macedonia, Greece, near the Gulf of Salonica. Nearby in 168 b.c. the Romans under Aemilius Paullus defeated the Macedonians under Perseus and thus ende...

(Encyclopedia) Thebes thēbz [key], city of ancient Egypt. Luxor and Karnak now occupy parts of its site. The city developed at a very early date from a number of small villages, particularly one around modern Luxor...

(Encyclopedia) Shriver, Eunice Mary Kennedy, 1921–2009, American philanthropist and advocate for the intellectually disabled, b. Brookline, Mass., grad. Stanford (1943); she was a daughter of Joseph P. Kennedy and...