ossuary
5
9.9
- noun
- /ˈɑːs.juˌɛr.i/
:
ossuario
- But then this set of ossuaries would seem to prove too much.
- James ossuary
Examples
-
A detail from the James Ossuary inscription below reveals fresh cuts through the surface coating.
Academic text (2003) -
"The scholars who were promoting the ossuary seemed to belittle that problem from the start.
Academic text (2004) -
But the James Ossuary was still capturing the world's attention.
Academic text (2003) -
The whole affair of the James Ossuary was in danger of becoming a comedy of errors.
Academic text (2003) -
Tabor points out that the James ossuary and others very likely come from the same recently documented site.
Academic text (2007) -
The James ossuary and the Talpiot vault would seem to stand or fall together.
Academic text (2007) -
And at Talpiot, there were empty spaces set aside for three more ossuaries.
Academic text (2007) -
Amnon Rosenfeld and Shimon Ilani of the GSI carried out microscopic and chemical tests on the ossuary.
Academic text (2003) -
The discovery in question was a small chalk ossuary, or bone container, bearing the Aramaic inscription Yaakov bar Yoseph, Achui.
Academic text (2003) -
The archaeological team uncovered an ancient ossuary that contained the bones of several individuals.
Synonyms
37
9.9
A stone coffin often decorated with carved pictures and writing used in ancient burials
15
6.9
An underground room for holding the bodies of several people
1
7.9
An underground space for burying a coffin that protects it and holds family coffins
How Big
Surface Forms
Morphology
ossuary = ossu + ary
The element 'ossu-' is a Latin combining form for 'bone' and is not a productive standalone English word, so learners cannot reliably infer 'container for bones' from its parts.
Etymology
Ossuary comes from the Latin root oss- meaning 'bone', the same root in ossify which means 'to turn into bone'. So an ossuary is literally a place for bones, which is why it holds the bones of the dead.