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figurehead
figurehead
The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English
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2009
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© The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English 2009, originally published by Oxford University Press 2009. (Hide copyright information)
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fig·ure·head
/ ˈfigyərˌhed/
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n.
1.
a nominal leader or head without real power.
2.
a carving, typically a bust or a full-length figure, set at the prow of an old-fashioned sailing ship.
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figurehead
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With royal approval the figurehead of HMS Queen Charlotte: earlier this year, a model for the figurehead of HMS Queen Charlotte, launched in 1790, was acquired by the Historic Dockyard, Chatham. Richard Hunter explains the importance of this carving, a design for one of the Royal Navy's last great figureheads, made in Chatham for Lord Howe's flagship in the war against France.
Magazine article from: Apollo; 10/1/2005; ; 700+ words
; ...for the full-length figurehead of HMS Queen Charlotte...sketches of proposed figureheads, models were also...1765 model for the figurehead of HMS Victory, in...the carving of the figurehead for HMS Victory...eighteenth century, naval figureheads throughout the great...
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CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK BEACH MAN'S REPLICA OF THE NORWEGIAN LADY FIGUREHEAD IS TAKING SHAPE AT THE MARINERS' MUSEUM.(VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON)
Newspaper article from: The Virginian Pilot; 3/28/1997; ; 700+ words
; ...the Norwegian Lady figurehead, which ran in The...full-breasted female figureheads in the ``Art of the...Photos of the old wooden figurehead that once rode the...to small ship's figureheads. For several years...the Norwegian Lady figurehead had been on his mind...
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Her effigy in wood: figureheads with feminine subjects.
Magazine article from: The Magazine Antiques; 12/1/1996; ; 700+ words
; ...figureheads.(2) The origin of figureheads is shrouded in mystery...the Irma Bentley held its figurehead of a little girl responsible...for many of the earliest figureheads in human form. Ship carvers...a full-length striding figurehead, attests to the enduring...
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 "Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England)")
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Figurehead to be unveiled after work; CASH FROM GANGSTER HELPED FUND RESTORATION.(News)
Newspaper article from: Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England); 12/19/2009; 700+ words
; ...bad lads home for decades. Now a 10ft figurehead restored to its former glory with the...home next month. The Admiral Boscawen figurehead, which once stood proud at the gates...Wellesley Nautical School, who donated the figurehead, along with the school's trustees...
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Figurehead gets nod; CAULFIELD CUP
Newspaper article from: The Press; 10/14/1999; 700+ words
; ...Caulfield Cup SYDNEY -- Connections of Figurehead were left beaming when the New Zealand...Handicap (2025m) last Wednesday, Figurehead was last nightdeemed by Victorian Amateur...advancing arguments for their own horses. Figurehead's promotion has shunted the Gai Waterhouse...
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Decommissioned figureheads go on show ; Historic works of art from a bygone era of the Royal Navy are now on display for visitors to view.
Newspaper article from: Plymouth Evening Herald, The; 6/5/2009; ; 541 words
; ...themselves." He added: "The figureheads themselves went out of fashion...today boasts a badge." The figureheads were built in sections...back to 1766 - houses 15 figureheads of various sizes and shapes...in Greenwich. The oldest figurehead in Plymouth, from the former...
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Figureheads: fantastic factoids about ancient sites, historical objects, and amazing discoveries.(art-i-facts)(Brief article)
Magazine article from: Dig; 7/1/2008; ; 687 words
; ...During the Age of Sail, figureheads became complex, ornate...Poseidon. For sailors, a figurehead was a sort of mascot...and blindfolded the figurehead's eyes so that it...bows) for bigger figureheads. The cost became so...ornamental carving. The figurehead pictured here once...
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William Rush's Indian Trader.(1790's merchant ship figurehead)
Magazine article from: The Magazine Antiques; 12/1/1999; ; 700+ words
; ...the lost Indian Trader figurehead. If so, it is the only surviving Indian figurehead to attest to Rush's...that Rush's striking figureheads, especially of American...one extant full-sized figurehead, Peace (see P1. IV...
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The carver's art at the ship's prow: a superbly illustrated new book rescues the figurehead sculptor's legacy from the misnomer of 'folk art'.(The Shipcarver's Art: Figureheads and Cigar-Store Indians in Nineteenth-Century America)(Book review)
Magazine article from: Apollo; 2/1/2006; ; 700+ words
; ...maritime. A ship's figurehead by the very nature...of the more iconic figureheads surviving in American...full-length female figurehead Lady with a Scarf...Hunter is an independent figurehead historian who works...around the world. www.figureheads.co.uk
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 "The Capital Times (Madison, WI)")
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BEST BETS.(LIFESTYLE)(BEST BETS\ CORRECTION: Figureheads: An item in Friday's Best Bets listed an incorrect date for the Figureheads show at the Middleton Performing Arts Center. The show is at 7 p.m. Saturday.\ (Correction published 11-18-06)\ @E ALL\ @S LIFESTYLE\ @P C1)(Column)
Newspaper article from: The Capital Times (Madison, WI); 11/17/2006; ; 700+ words
; ...an incorrect date for the Figureheads show at the Middleton Performing...Music with a message The Figureheads are a local hip-hop outfit...Publishing, continues the Figurehead's mission to move young...educating and inspiring. The Figureheads will play a CD release party...
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figurehead
Book article from: The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea
figurehead, an ornamental...acrostolium . Figureheads were originally...forming the figurehead and its tail...All these figureheads were carved...Popular Figureheads. The lion...favourite figurehead for warships...
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William Rush
Encyclopedia entry from: Encyclopedia of World Biography
...sculptor to emerge from the folk-art and figurehead carving tradition of the early years...his earliest known commissions for figureheads date from about 1790. As time went...Probably because of his superior skill at figurehead carving, Rush was able to advance to...
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superstitions of sailors
Book article from: The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea
...of a vessel has continued almost to the present day with figureheads . It used to be an ill omen to start a voyage on certain...before them. It was for this reason that so many ships' figureheads showed a woman with a naked breast. In Kuwait, Alan Villiers...
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Sculpture
Book article from: The Oxford Companion to United States History
...Colonial Era , untrained artisans carved gravestones, ship figureheads, and furniture. William Rush (1756–1833...the culmination of the woodcarving tradition with his ship figureheads and outdoor public sculpture such as Water Nymph and Bittern...
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Virginia Beach: Recreation
Encyclopedia entry from: Cities of the United States
...the sea and maritime exploration over the past 3,000 years. The museum's 11 galleries contain a unique collection of figureheads, paintings, small craft, ship models, and other marine artifacts. In addition, the museum offers demonstrations by...
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