Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) pomegranate pŏmˈgrănĭt, pŏmˈə– [key], handsome deciduous and somewhat thorny large shrub or small tree (Punica granatum) belonging to the family Punicaceae, native to semitropical Asia and na...

(Encyclopedia) Exodus ĕkˈsədəs [key], book of the Bible, 2d of the 5 books of the Law (the Pentateuch or Torah) ascribed by tradition to Moses. The book continues the story of the ancestors of Israel in Egypt, n...

(Encyclopedia) Dante Alighieri dănˈtē, Ital. dänˈtā älēgyĕˈrē [key], 1265–1321, Italian poet, b. Florence. Dante was the author of the Divine Comedy, one of the greatest of literary classics. Dante's ...

(Encyclopedia) seaweed, name commonly used for the multicellular marine algae. Simpler forms, consisting of one cell (e.g., the diatom) or of a few cells, are not generally called seaweeds; these tiny plants help to...

(Encyclopedia) Langham, Simon lăngˈəm [key], d. 1376, English prelate and statesman, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He ruled the abbey of Westminster with such skill that Edward III appointed (1360) him t...

(Encyclopedia) algum ălˈməg, ôlˈ– [key], precious wood mentioned in the Bible (2 Chron. 2.8; 9.10,11), used in the Temple of Solomon and in his palace, brought from Ophir and Lebanon. It is perhaps a red sand...

(Encyclopedia) Dove, Arthur Garfield dŭv [key], 1880–1946, American painter, b. Canandaigua, N.Y. Early in his career he did commercial illustration in New York City. Following a European trip (1907–9), he adop...

(Encyclopedia) Dufour, Guillaume Henri gēyōmˈ äNrēˈ düfo͞orˈ [key], 1787–1875, Swiss general. He served in the French army under Napoleon I, and in 1847 he led the Swiss federal forces to victory against ...

(Encyclopedia) cinnabar sĭnˈəbär [key], mineral, the sulfide of mercury, HgS. Deep red in color, it is used as a pigment (see vermilion), but principally it is a source of the metal mercury. It is mined in Spain...

(Encyclopedia) curry [Malayalam], condiment much used in India and elsewhere in Asia and the Middle East, in combination with rice, meat, and a variety of other dishes. It is compounded of such spices as turmeric, f...