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 ARGOT — A R D E C H E term given to the spiral of the Ionic volute and the not commenced till 1160 ; and this is borne out by the excellence of Helix, tendrils of the Corinthian capital. the masonry throughout, which presented a marked contrast w ith Opisthodomus (Greek, from oTn-aOev, behind, and db/xos, a house), that of St Stephen’s, built in 1014. Instead of being the first an enclosed chamber behind the naos and entered from the domed church therefore, it was the last, of any magnitude. epinaos, employed to store the treasury of the temple. The following additions require to be made to the glossary given Porttcus, a building with its roof supported by one or more rows in the ninth edition :— of columns, either in one straight line or enclosing a space Apophyge—(a) the inverted cavetto or concave sweep taken by (Greek, arod). the lower part of the shaft in the Ionic and Corinthian orders Stereobate, the substructure of rough masonry beneath a temple. before its junction with the base. {b) The hollow or scotia Stylobate, the upper of the three steps on which the Greek temple beneath the Doric echinus forming the junction between the stands ; generally applied to the three steps. capital and the shaft. the sacred enclosure round a temple. Atrium—(a) the open court of a Roman house, surrounded by a Temenos, term given to Greek circular buildings with or without a colonnade or partially roofed over by projecting eaves. (&) The Tholos, peristyle. court in front of a church, surrounded by colonnades or arcades. the curtain or awning extended above the auditorium Cella, the sanctuary of a Greek or Roman temple, enclosed by Yelarium, of the Roman theatre to protect the spectators from sun or rain. walls and entered from the pronaos = pads in Greek. a rude and primitive image carved in wood. Epinaos, the open vestibule behind the naos or cella, sometimes Xo’anon, called the opisthodomus, as it was occasionally enclosed with Zoophorus, a continuous frieze sculptured in relief, with the figures of human beings and animals. (b. p. s.) metal grilles and contained the properties of the temple. 610

ArCOt, a town of British India, which gives its name to two districts in the Madras presidency. The town has now lost its manufactures and trade, and preserves only a few mosques and tombs as traces of its former grandeur. The district of .North Argot has an area of 7616 square miles. In 1891 its population was 2,180,487, being 286 persons per square mile; in 1901 the population was 2,208,391, showing an increase of 4 per cent. The administrative headquarters are at Chittur, but the largest towns are Vellore (the military station), Tirupati (a great religious centre), and Wallajapet and Kalahasti (the two chief places of trade). The land revenue and rates in 1897-98 were Rs.32,60,842, the incidence of assessment being Rs.2 : 7 : 0 per acre ; the cultivated area was 828,396 acres, of which 366,245 were irrigated, including 49,783 from government canals; the number of police was 1284; the boys at school in 1896-97 numbered 42,509, being 26 per cent, of the male population of school-going age; the registered death-rate in 1897 was 20’2 per thousand. The district of South Argot has an area of 5217 square miles. In 1891 its population was 2,162,851, being 414 persons per square mile; in 1901 the population was 2,350,365, showing an increase of 9 per cent. The administrative headquarters are at Cuddalore, close to the site of Fort St David. The land revenue and rates in 1897-98 were Rs.45,82,820, the incidence of assessment being Rs.2:7 :9 per acre; the cultivated area was 1,456,961 acres, of which 470,353 were irrigated from tanks, &c., including 141,210 from government canals ; the number of police was 963; the boys at school in 1896-97 numbered 36,464, being 22’5 per cent, of the male population of school-going age; the registered deathrate in 1897 was 21‘2 per thousand. The principal crops in both districts are rice, millet, other food grains, oilseeds, and indigo. Arctic Ocean. See Polar Regions. Arctic Regions. See Polar Regions. Arcueil, a town of France, department of Seine, in the arrondissement of Sceaux, and 2| miles N.E. of that town, on the railway from Paris to Sceaux. It takes its name from a Roman aqueduct, the Arcus Juliani, some traces of which still remain. Two superimposed aqueducts now supply water to Paris. Starch, vermicelli, bottle capsules, patent leather, and other articles are manufactured. There are important quarries. Population (1881), 5529; (1891), 5863; (1896), 6418, (comm.) 6494. Ardebil, or Ardabil, chief town and seat of government of a district, or sub-province of the province of Azerb&ijdn, in north-western Persia, in lat. 38° 14' N, long.

48° 21' E., and at an elevation of 4500 feet. It is situated on the Baluk Su (fish-river), a tributary of the Kara Su (Black river), which flows northwards to the Arras, and in a fertile plain bounded on the west by the Savalan lUgh, a volcanic mountain with an altitude of 15,792 feet (Russian triangulation). Ardebil has a population of about 10,000, a garrison of half a battalion of infantry, and post and telegraph offices. Its trade, principally in the hands of Armenians, is still important, but is chiefly a transit trade between Persia and Russia by way of Astara, a port on the Caspian 30 miles N.E. of Ardebil (Dr F. Sarre, “ Reise von Ardebil,” &c., in Petermann’s Mitteilungen, September 1899). Plans and photographs of the shrine and mosques were taken in 1897 by Dr F. Sarre of Berlin. European and Chinese merchants resided at Ardebil in the Middle Ages, and for a long time the city was a great emporium for Central Asian and Indian merchandise, which was forwarded to Europe by way of the Caucasus and the Volga, and also via Tabriz and Trebizond. Since the 16th century, when Persia fell under the sway of the Safavi dynasty, the place has been much frequented by pilgrims, who come to pay their devotions at the shrine of Shaikh Safi, the ancestor of Shah Ismail, who was the founder of the dynasty, and the shrine is a richly-endowed establishment, with mosques and college attached. It ^had also a fine library, containing many rare and valuable MSS. presented by Shah Abbas at the beginning of the 17th century; but most of these MSS. were carried off by the Russians in 1828, and are now in St Petersburg. The grand carpet, which had covered the floor of one of the mosques for three centuries, was purchased by a traveller some years ago for about one hundred pounds, and was finally acquired by the South Kensington Museum for many thousands. ArdCChC, a department of the S. of France, traversed by the Cevennes and watered by the Rhone and its affluent the Ardeche. Area, 2145 square miles, with 31 cantons and 339 communes. The population declined to 375,472 in 1886 and 363,501 in 1896. In 1899 the births numbered 8465, of which 170 were illegitimate, the deaths 8437, and the marriages 2625. The chief towns are Privas (7843 inhabitants in 1896), Largentiere, Tournon, and Annonay. In 1896 there were 1171 primary schools, with 61,178 pupils ; 8 per cent, of the population was illiterate. The surface under cultivation comprised 938,499 acres, or more than threefifths of the department, but the plough-land made up only 480,871 acres. The vine, attaining a fair range of cultivation, had 36,628 acres. In 1899 the wheat crop reached the value of £247,625, and the vine about a seventh more. Ardeche is one of the departments in which the mulberry grows most abundantly. The crop of leaves amounted in 1899 to nearly 73,000 cwts., and sericulture has developed in proportion, yielding 33,000 cwts. of cocoons, of the value of about £199,000. There were 25,000 sericulturists, and only Drome and Gard have a greater number. The live stock in 1899 numbered 14,170 horses, 10,450 mules and asses, 97,760 cattle, 229,690 sheep, 102,140 pigs, and 128,580 goats. The mining production is inconsiderable, yielding in 1898, 50,000 tons of coal and 48,000 tons of iron. The working in metals realized in 1898 only some 23,000 tons of iron. The principal industries are paper manufacture (Annonay), tanning, and weaving.