Palmette,
ornament derived from vegetal forms consisting of petals radiating from a calyxlike base, used alone or repeated to form a border or frieze. Palmettes were sometimes elaborated with hearts, additional petals or tendrils, and often combined with floral motifs such as the lotus. The simple palmette, continuing a classical Greek form, was a standard feature of architectural ornament as well as of decorative borders in wall mosaics, monumental painting, and sumptuary arts of all periods. A rounded form with large petals, often termed the “Sasanian” palmette, was perhaps derived from Near Eastern art. It frequently appears in ... ...
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