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basilicas

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basilicas


  1  definition  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Basilica  \Ba*sil"i*ca\,  n.;  pl  {Basilicas};  sometimes 
  {Basilic[ae]}  (-s[=e]).  [L.  basilica,  Gr  ?  (  sc  ?,  or  ?) 
  fr  ?  royal,  fr  ?  king.] 
  Originally,  the  place  of  a  king;  but  afterward,  an  apartment 
  provided  in  the  houses  of  persons  of  importance,  where 
  assemblies  were  held  for  dispensing  justice;  and  hence  any 
  large  hall  used  for  this  purpose. 
 
  2.  (Arch.) 
  a  A  building  used  by  the  Romans  as  a  place  of  public 
  meeting,  with  court  rooms  etc.,  attached. 
  b  A  church  building  of  the  earlier  centuries  of 
  Christianity,  the  plan  of  which  was  taken  from  the 
  basilica  of  the  Romans.  The  name  is  still  applied  to 
  some  churches  by  way  of  honorary  distinction. 




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