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cockfighting

(Encyclopedia)cockfighting, sport of pitting gamecocks against one other. Though popular in ancient Greece, Persia, and Rome, cockfighting has been long opposed by clergy and humane groups. Massachusetts passed (18...

closet drama

(Encyclopedia)closet drama, a play that is meant to be read rather than performed. Precursors of the form existed in classical times. Plato's Apology is often regarded as tragic drama rather than philosophic dialog...

Hera

(Encyclopedia)Hera hĭrˈə, hērˈə [key], in Greek religion and mythology, queen of the Olympian gods, daughter of Kronos and Rhea. She was the wife and sister of Zeus and the mother of Ares and Hephaestus. A je...

Gabii

(Encyclopedia)Gabii gāˈbēī [key], ancient town of Latium, 12 mi (19.3 km) E of Rome on the road to Praeneste (modern Palestrina). According to legend, Romulus was reared there. One of the most important of the ...

Ermoupolis

(Encyclopedia)Ermoupolis, Hermoupolis sēˈrôs [key], city, capital of Cyclades prefecture, SE Greece, on the east coast ...

Mégara

(Encyclopedia)Mégara mĕˈgərə, –gärä [key], town (1991 pop. 25,061), E central Greece, on the Saronic Gulf. Wine, olive oil, and flour are produced. It is the site of the ancient town of Mégara, the capita...

pentathlon

(Encyclopedia)pentathlon pĕntăthˈlən [key], composite athletic event. In ancient Greece it comprised leaping, foot racing, wrestling, discus throwing, and casting the javelin. The modern pentathlon, an Olympic ...

Maltese

(Encyclopedia)Maltese môltēzˈ [key], breed of very small toy dog of obscure origin that was widely popular in Europe by the beginning of the 19th cent. It stands about 5 in. (12.7 cm) high at the shoulder and we...

academies of art

(Encyclopedia)academies of art, official organizations of established artists. Lorenzo de' Medici's informal circle of great artists and thinkers was modeled on similar groups formed in classical Greece. The first ...

Bourdelle, Émile Antoine

(Encyclopedia)Bourdelle, Émile Antoine āmēlˈ äNtwänˈ bo͞ordĕlˈ [key], 1861–1929, French sculptor; son of a cabinetmaker of Montauban. He went to Paris in 1884, where he studied successively under Falgui...