frontispiece
- noun
- /ˈfrʌntɪˌspiːs/
- Archaic
:
frontispicio
- Visitors admired the ornate frontispiece of the old cathedral, which showcased beautiful carvings and sculptures.
Examples
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On this particular frontispiece, two thick, white stems originate in the lower margin, growing out of and away from a multicolored floral base.
Academic text (2008) -
The frontispiece of the museum's new exhibit features an intricate design that captures its historical significance.
-
The frontispiece depicted a crucified mechanical Christ.
Fiction book (1992) -
As for the close association drawn between hunting and peace at this time, we need only turn to the frontispiece of Pierre Matthieu's Histoire de France (1610) for evidence (Fig. 35).
Academic text (1996) -
PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): 15 Huyberts, Frontispiece to Ruysch's Icon Duraematris, Amsterdam, 1738, engraving. Stanford, Lane Medical Library, Rare Books (photo: Stanford Visual Services)
Academic text (1996) -
His sense of the centrality of The Last Judgment as an epitome of art itself and of the divine enterprise of the artist, as epitomized by Michelangelo, is manifest in his frontispiece to the 1568 edition of his Lives.
Academic text (2002) -
It was in the early 1620s, following his return to Nancy from twelve years in Italy, that he produced his Balli di Sfessania, a work consisting of a frontispiece and twenty-three pages of paired figures.
Academic text (2001) -
C. H. Huyberts, Frontispiece to Ruysch's Opera Omnia, Amsterdam, 1744, engraving. Stanford University Library, Special Collections (photo: Stanford Visual Services)
Academic text (1996) -
Among the finest examples of Francesco d'Antonio's firmly attributed work from the mid-1450s is the sumptuously decorated frontispiece of Saint Jerome's Epistulae (Fig. 5).
Academic text (2008) -
In the library, the frontispiece of the rare book displayed a stunning illustration that drew everyone's attention.
Synonyms
26
6.3
The front of a building that is often decorated or impressive
A triangular decorative section above a building entrance often with sculpture
A decorative piece people add to a building to make it look nicer
A part of a building front that sticks out from the wall for decoration
Antonyms
How Ornate
- Archaic
26
6.3
Surface Forms
Etymology
Frontispiece comes from old parts meaning 'front' and 'piece', so it originally named the decorated part at the front of a building that people look at. That's why a frontispiece is an ornamental or decorated face on the front of a building.