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exljj, ? c ‘j a > in which Titus is said by Suetonius to havel eai ed a sea_ flght, lias occasioned some dispute among theand oti’ some understanding it to be the Circus Maximus ,app e lers the lake dug by order of Augustus. Domitian are Unt ) S ‘° have been the first who erected a building of stonetut 0l . 1 lese artificial lakes. Previous to his time the spec-ie eu s ' ! ]^ ear to l>ave sat upon wooden benches, which mightrise gradually above one another with thetitoea ♦] ‘ lad ' Jeen dug out of the artificial lake. In laterlike tl * e naumac ln<E were usually surrounded with buildingsT],^ 6 aai pld theatre or circus.
di v ij (J( j S . n Ps which were engaged in these sea-fights werethe tla ln ‘° two parties, which were called respectively by68 °f different maritime nations, as the Tyrian and' v ho w , 8n the Sicilian and Rhodian. The combatants,
Csi Ptives 6 CaPcd Naumachiarii, were usually composed ofthe or criminals, who fougiit to death, unless saved byi‘UVe fi le emperor. These sea-fights were said to
"Plfeudo 611 ex ' l *^* te( i on such a scale of magnificence and^'‘ihitefi I** 8 a ' most t0 surpass our belief. In the nauinachiafit th e a vc ■.^ ero > there were sea-monsters swimming aboutSilver '/ j ' a i lake, and Claudius caused a Triton, made of> >nud°o , Placed in the middle of the lake Fueinus, who* rUrri lH:t t maclli »ery, to give the signal of attack with anauinachia the number of shipson W f S a ^ nost equal to two real fleets, and in the sea-fifiveril,. ‘‘ e hike Fucinus, tincombatants.
tl 2 '"-Z' a r t Prom the Latin nebula, a cloud) an ornament of. 01ni > but without angles. It is chiefly found in
' llld Win,/, 118 op Saxon architecture, in the archivolts of doors
hCRcJ nvs -
p 1 '^ file I a ca pitul, the space between the channelures. 0lt >aii pj fifinlets of tlie Grecian Doric capital. In the'fiiriuig t _ ° n<: > it is the space between the astragal and the
o{ Atl 'cns h h 0nic ca P' ta i s °f Minerva Polias, and Ereclitheus,file Ioni. lVe nee kings, but most other antique examples„blips' 5 pi?,®!' aie without them.
y . fiiscb 1 i' 1 biography, a painter of architecture,
lo7o P Henry Steenwick, born at Antwerp , in the
di^Hy •] Was P ai ‘ticularly skilful in perspective, and
ssi^ ! *y of < l 1 10se s, *ch subjects as required a considerable
4;*''i«“r- scie " cei ”' 1 ' .
fiftvJ and
the m fcf l u alled
there are said to have been no
, _ as the interior of churches,
&e. These he drew with great neatness andPainted very clear, gay, and agreeably, but beiin<* l ' le tlu( k Ms master. His execution offtrai" 5 "fiiicM aUd masses of columns, in tiie various Gothicoriinl c i lose as models, is too neat, and too muchof hght ne lnes ’ Por rea i imitation ;• but that very defect givesf,. e le huilQj* 8 ’ and ''he truth with which he drew the formsfian "'t'ouof’ and P ro P 01 'tioned his figures, which are veryJw ers the” 11 ’ th °agh not unfrequently by other artists,
l hS^Uer e Ve " y a S reeable ‘
cc].
Wilful 0ften called' u ‘ excta e h U '
°f tli„ ® Xecu tion made amends for his want of know-
uponamen
He died at the age of 81, leavio is denomifather, whose
hid 8on , wC man figure -
also was Peter, and who is denomi-l‘e etl ce | u ' n contradistinction to his
‘he ad 16 Mt ° P P a ’ nt ing he never rivalled, althoughtoA Se d in th Van ‘ a S e of his example and instruction, andt'tg h ^A'X’|Yp Saaie branch of the art.j|fiec e( j ec j QUANTITIES, are those quantities which
Mn^ti
It,
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effected with the negative
Utip "' :, ‘ote s ~ s V“ a 'S e bra, is that character or symbol,to fj e u h‘ ra ction, being a short line preceding thesubtracted, and is read minus ; thus, a — b
denotes that the quantity b is to be taken from the quantity a,and is read a minus b; like signs produce plus, and unlikesigns minus, hence — a X 1) = + a b. The introduc-tion of this character has given rise to various contro-versies, with regard to the legality or illegality of certainconclusions depending upon it; some maintaining, that asa negative quantity is in itself totally imaginary, it oughtnot to be introduced into a science, the excellency of whichdepends upon the rigour and certainty of its conclusions ;while others, running into the opposite extreme, have endea-voured to illustrate what will not admit of illustration, andthus, like other zealots, have been the greatest enemies ofthe cause they were endeavouring to defend.
It is in vain to attempt to define what can have no possibleexistence ; a quantity less than nothing is totally incompre-hensible ; and to illustrate it, by reference to a debtor andcreditor account, to say the least of it, says Barrow, ishighly derogatory to this most extensive and comprehensivescience.
NERVES, in architecture, the mouldings of the groinedribs of Gothic vaults.
NET, or Eete, (from the Saxon, net, derived from theGothic, nati) the covering of a body or geometrical solid.See Envelope and Soffit.
Net Measure, in building, is when no allowance is madefor finishing ; and in artificers’ works, when no allowance ismade for waste of materials.
Net Masonry. See Masonry and Stone Walls.
NEWEL, in architecture, the upright post or centralcolumn, round which the steps of a circular staircase aremade to wind; being that part of the staircase by whichthey are sustained.
The newel is, properly, a cylinder of stone, which bearson the ground, and is formed by the ends of the steps of thewinding-stairs.
There are also newels of wood, which are pieces of timberplaced perpendicularly, receiving the tenons of the steps ofwooden stairs into their mortises, and wherein are fitted theshafts and rests of the staircase, and the flights of each story.In some of the Tudor and Elizabethan residences, some veryfine examples may be seen of the newel richly ornamented,and adding much to the beauty of the staircase.
NICHE, (from the Italian, niechia, shell) in architecture,a cavity, or hollow place, in the thickness of a wall, to placea figure or statue in.
Niches are made to partake of all the segments under asemicircle. They are sometimes at an equal distance fromthe front, and parallel or square on the back with the frontline; in which case they are called square recesses, or squareniches. The larger niches serve for groups of figures, thesmaller for single statues, and sometimes only for busts.
Great care must be taken to proportion the niches to thefigures, and the pedestal of the figures to the niches.
Niches are sometimes made with rustic work.
Few niches are to be found in Grecian antiquity, butwhat may be supposed to have been erected under thedominion of the Romans.
In the Pantheon at Rome , the niches are all rectangularrecesses, dressed in the same manner as the apertures ofdoors; the columns are insulated, and the entablaturescrowned with triangular and circular pediments alternately.The large niches, or exedrse, on the sides, have cylindricalbacks, but finish at top with the soffit of the architrave ofthe general entablature; these niches have each two columnsplaced in the aperture which supports the architrave. Theentablature is continued without any break or interruptionof recesses, except by the large cylindro-spherical niche"
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