stele

stele
—stelar /stee"leuhr/, adj.
/stee"lee, steel/ for 1-3; /steel, stee"lee/ for 4, n., pl. stelai /stee"luy/, steles /stee"leez, steelz/.
1. an upright stone slab or pillar bearing an inscription or design and serving as a monument, marker, or the like.
2. Archit. a prepared surface on the face of a building, a rock, etc., bearing an inscription or the like.
3. (in ancient Rome) a burial stone.
4. Bot. the central cylinder or cylinders of vascular and related tissue in the stem, root, petiole, leaf, etc., of the higher plants.
Also, stela (for defs. 1-3).
[1810-20; < Gk stéle, akin to histánai to make stand, L stare to STAND]

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Standing stone tablet used in the ancient world primarily as a grave marker but also for dedication, commemoration, and demarcation.

Though the stele's origin is unknown, a stone slab was commonly used as a tombstone in Egypt, Greece, Asia, and the Mayan empire. In Babylon, the Code of Hammurabi was engraved on a tall stele. The largest number of stelae were produced in Attica, chiefly as grave markers. The dead were represented on the stelae as they were in life: men as warriors or athletes, women surrounded by their children, and children with their pets or toys.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • stèle — [ stɛl ] n. f. • 1694; lat. stela, gr. stêlê ♦ Monument monolithe (colonne, cippe, pierre plate) qui porte une inscription, des ornements sculptés. Stèle commémorative, funéraire. « C était une de ces spacieuses sépultures familiales [...] . Une… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Stele — Stèle Une stèle est un monument monolithe dressé, généralement plat et porteur d inscriptions de nature commémorative, funéraire, religieuse ou géographique. Sommaire 1 Stèles antiques 1.1 Stèles de l Égypte antique 1.1.1 Les stèles… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • stele — / stɛle/ (raro stela) s.f. [dal gr. stḗlē, lat. stela o stele ] (pl. e, raro i ). (archeol.) [lastra oblunga di marmo o di pietra con un iscrizione o un immagine in rilievo, spec. con funzione di monumento funebre o commemorativo: s. votiva ]… …   Enciclopedia Italiana

  • Stele — (st[=e]l), n. [See {Stale} a handle.] A stale, or handle; a stalk. [Obs.] Chaucer. Holland. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Stēle — (griech.), Säule, namentlich Grabstein, gewöhnlich ein viereckiger, nach oben sich etwas verjüngender und mit Blätter oder Blumenverzierungen (Anthemien) gekrönter Pfeiler, der den Namen des Verstorbenen trägt (s. Abbildung und Tafel »Grabmäler« …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • stele — upright slab, usually inscribed, 1820, from Gk. stele standing block, slab, from PIE root *stel to put, stand (see STALL (Cf. stall) (n.1)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • stele — [stē′lē; ] also, & for 2 & 3 usually [, stēl] n. [L stela < Gr stēlē, post, slab < IE base * stel > STILL1] 1. an upright stone slab or pillar engraved with an inscription or design and used as a monument, grave marker, etc. 2. Archit. a …   English World dictionary

  • Stele — Ste le (st[=e] l[=e]), n. [NL.] Same as {Stela}. [1913 Webster] One of these steles, containing the Greek version of the ordinance, has recently been discovered. I. Taylor (The Alphabet). [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Stele — (gr.), 1) Säule; daher Stelogrăphie, die Säulenschrift; 2) Schandsäule, woran Strafurtheile gegen Abwesende geschrieben u. öffentlich ausgestellt wurden; 3) ein säulenähnlicher Grabstein …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Stele — Stēle (grch.), freistehende Pfeilersäule; insbes. der im griech. Altertum übliche, aus einer Marmorplatte hergestellte und mit Reliefs verzierte Grabstein (Grab S.) [Tafel: Griechisch Römische Kunst II, 21] …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Stele — Stele, griech., Säule, Strebepfeiler; Stelographie, Säulenschrift …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

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