Phrygian cap

Phrygian cap
a soft, conical cap represented in ancient Greek art as part of Phrygian or oriental dress and associated, since the late 18th and early 19th centuries, with the liberty cap.
[1840-50]

* * *

      soft felt or wool conical headdress fitting closely around the head and characterized by a pointed crown that curls forward. It originated in the ancient country of Phrygia in Asia Minor and is represented in ancient Greek art as the type of headdress worn by Orientals. In Rome the Phrygian cap was worn by emancipated slaves as a symbol of their freedom. During the 11th and 12th centuries, it was again extensively used.

      The Phrygian cap once more became the emblem of liberty in the 18th century during the French Revolution, when it was adopted by the Revolutionaries as “the red cap of liberty.” It continues to be associated with the national allegorical figure of Liberté.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Phrygian cap — Phryg i*an cap A close fitting cap represented in Greek art as worn by Orientals, assumed to have been conical in shape. It has been adopted in modern art as the so called {liberty cap}, or {cap of liberty}. [Webster 1913 Suppl.] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Phrygian cap — The Phrygian cap is a soft, red, conical cap with the top pulled forward, worn in antiquity by the inhabitants of Phrygia, a region of central Anatolia. In sculpture, paintings and caricatures it represents freedom and the pursuit of… …   Wikipedia

  • phrygian cap — noun Usage: usually capitalized P : a close fitting cap represented in Greek art as conical and identified in modern art with the liberty cap compare bonnet rouge …   Useful english dictionary

  • PHRYGIAN CAP —    a cap worn by the Phrygians, and worn in modern times as the symbol of freedom …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Phrygian cap — 9th to end of 12th century. Common pointed cap with the apex turned over slightly towards the front …   Medieval glossary

  • Phrygian cap — the normal radiological appearance of the tip of the gall bladder, seen in a minority of cholecystograms (see cholecystography). Its name is derived from its resemblance to the characteristic Balkan headgear. * * * the appearance of the… …   Medical dictionary

  • Phrygian cap — the normal radiological appearance of the tip of the gall bladder, seen in a minority of cholecystograms (see cholecystography). Its name is derived from its resemblance to the characteristic Balkan headgear …   The new mediacal dictionary

  • Phrygian — late 15c., native of Phrygia, region in ancient Asia Minor; Phrygian mode in Greek music theory is from 1570s (it was held to be of a warlike character ). Phrygian cap (1796) was the type adopted by freed slaves in Roman times, and subsequently… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Phrygian — can refer to: *A person from Phrygia *Phrygian cap once characteristic of the region * Phrygian language *Phrygian mode in music * Phrygian Valley, a historic location in northwestern Turkey …   Wikipedia

  • cap of liberty — Phrygian cap Phryg i*an cap A close fitting cap represented in Greek art as worn by Orientals, assumed to have been conical in shape. It has been adopted in modern art as the so called {liberty cap}, or {cap of liberty}. [Webster 1913 Suppl.] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”