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The Epifyle is the firfi, or lwefi Member of the En-
tablature. See ENTABLATURE.
The Word is derived fiom the Greek, at, fiuper, upon,
and sva,;, Column.
EPITAPH, a Monumental Infcription, in Honourf or
Memory, of a Defunat ; or an Infcription engraven, or cut,
on a Tomb, to mark the Time of a Perfon's Deceafe, his
Name, Family, and ufually fome Eloge of his Vertues, or
good Qualities. See MONUMENT, TOMB, SC.
The Style of Epitaphs, efpeciall} thofe compofed in
Zatin, is fingular. See LAPIDARY Style.
At Sparta, Epitaihs were only allowed to People who
died in Battel. Boxhornius has made a Colledtion of
Epitaphs, not very ample, but exceedingly well chofen.
Fa. 1abbe, has likewife given a Colledftion of the like Kind,
in French ; entitled, Trefor des 1ilitaphes. Gambden has
done Something in the fame Way in our Englifh Epitaphs.
An Epitaph is faid to be yet wanting to the Duke of
MarlborougV's Monument; tho' a Premium of 500 Pounds
was offer'd by his Dowager, to him that Should compote
one worthy of the Hero deceas'd.
In Epitaphs, the dead Perfon is Sometimes introduced,
by Way of Profopepaoia, fpeaking to the Living i of which
we have a fine Inflance, worthy the 4Auguf an Age, wherein
the dead Wife thus befpeaks her furviving Husband.
Immatura peri: fed tit felicior, Annos
vive tuos, Conjux oftirie, vive meosi
The Word comes from A, upon, and        , Sepuleher.
See SEPuLCI-iPR.
The French have a Proverb, Menteur comme uine Epi-
tapth: He lies like an Epitaph i in Allufion to the
Eloges ordinarily contain'd therein, which are not always
over juf.
EPITAPIH, is alfo applied to certain Eloges, either in
Profe or Verfe, compofed without any Intent to be en-
graven on Tombs.
In the Collection of Epigrams, we have Abundance of
fuch Epitaphs; fome of them    ludricrous and fatyrical.
See EPIGRAM.
For a Specimen, we fhall here add a very beautiful
Epitaph, compofed by Mr. Co-wley, on himfelf, to be
put on a little Country Houfe, whither he retreated from
the Court and Town, to fpend his laft Days.
tic, 0 Viator, fub Lare parvulo,
Couleius hic efi Conditus, hic jacet
Defundius humani laboris
Sorte, fupervacuaq; Vita;
Non indecora pauperie nitens,
Et non inerti nobilis otio,
Vanoq5 dileEtis popeblo,
Divitzis, animotus Ihofis.
9PoJis ut ilium  dicere mortuum,
En terra jam nunc quantula fffiJcit t
Exempta fit curis, Viator,
T'erra fit illa levis, precare.
i-ic fparge flores, fparge breves Rofas,
Nam vita gaudet Afortua floribuss;
lerbifq; odoratis corona
Vatis adhuc cinerem Calentem.
EPITASIS, in the antient Poetry, the fecond PNrt, or
Divifion of a Dramatic Poem; wherein, the Plot, or
Aftion, propofed, and enter'd upon, in the firfl Part, or
!Prota/is, was carried on, heighten'd, warm'd, and work'd
up, till it arrived at its State, or Height, call'd the Cataftafis.
See PROTASIs, and CATASTASIS.
This Divifion is laid afide in the Modern Drama; in
Lieu whereof, our Plays are divided into .A's. See ACT.
The Epitajis might, ordinarily, take up about our fe-
cond or third Act. See TRAGEDY.
The Word is pure Greek, 4174075) of SM7916, Intendo,
I heighten.
EPITASIS, in Medicine, is fometimes ufed for the In-
creafe, or Growth, and heightening of a Difeafe; or a
Paroxyfm of a Difeafe, particularly a Fever. See STATE.
EPITHALAMIUM, in Poetry, a Nuptial Song; or a
Compofition, ufually in Verfe, on Occafion of a Marriage
between two Perfons of Eminence.
The Topicks it chiefly infifis on, are the Praifes of
Matrimony, and of the Married Couple; with the Pomp
and Order of the Marriage Solemnity.     It concludes,
with praying to the Gods for their Profperity, their happy
Offspring, 9c. Catulnas exceeded all Antiquity, in his
Epithalamiuts; and the Cavalier Marino, all the Moderns.
The Word is form'd of 4c; and 9oa         , Bride-
Cbamber.


EPITHEME, EPITHEMA)        in Pharmacy, a Kind of
Fomentatiot, or Remedy, of a liquid, fpirituous Kind;
applied externally upon the Regions of the heart, or Livers
to ftrengthen and comfort the fame, or to corre& fm
Intemperature. See FOMENTATION.
There are two Kinds of _Epithems; the one Liquid,
and the other Solid: The Liquid Lpitbem is a Pomenta-
tion of a more Spirituous Nature than tle reft; the Solid, is
a Mixture of Conferves, Treacle, Confections, and Cordial
Powders, generally I'pread on a Piece of Scarlet, or Leather.
The Word is form'd of the Greek, 0X7, flpon, and
77%, pono, I put.
EPITHET, a Noun Adjective, expret~ing fome Quality
of a Subftantive to which it is:jo(yn d. See-ADJECTIVE.
As, a fruitful Vine,t a flately Pile, an Echoing Vault, &c.
Epithets, are Engines of lity U 'e and Conveniency
among the Poets and Orators; wo 1upply in Epithetsj what
they want in Things. Card. Perron even blames Homer
on the Head of Epithets;   observing, that he frequently
hooks in Epithets, without any Senfe, or Significancy at
all, to help out his Meafures; and that he equips every
Hero with an Epithet, not according to the Exigence of
the Cafe, but the Meafure of the Verfe.
The Word is form'd of A, upon?, and And pofitio, putting.
EPITHET, is alfo ufed for a Sur-name, or fecond Ap-
pellation. See SUR-NAME.
Epithets, were antiently beflow'd very frankly, either on
Account of any Defeds of the Body,- or Mind:      The
Kings themfelves, were not exempted from themn. Hence,
tofe Epithets fo frequent in Hiitory;  as Henry Long-
]hanks, Edward Iron-fides, Richard Crook-back, John
Lack-land, &c.
Nor have the French ufed their Kings any better:
Witnefs their Charles the fimple, Louis the lazy, faneant,
Ludovicus nihil faciens;  Pepin the Jhort;  Louis the
Stammerer, le Begue.
EPITHYME, a Medicinal Plant, of a very extraordi-
nary Nature and Figure.   Its Seed is very minall, from
which arife long Threads like Hairs, which foon perilh,
as well as the Root, uniefs they meet with fome neigh-
bouring Plant, both to flufain and feed them.
The E. ithyme grows indifferently on all Kinds of Herbs;
and, of Confequence, the Kinds thereof are infinite: To
which Writers us ally attribute the particular Virtues of the
Plants they grow on.
The mofl known of thefe Plants, and thofe moft ufed
in Medicii e, are fuch as grow on Thyme; which are the
proper Eithymes ; and thofe on Fl-x.   There are two
Kinds in thc Shops ; the one from Venice, the other
from Candia : They have both an Aromatic Taft, but
that of Veizice the iirongeft.
Their Mfe is to firengih n the Paits, and prevcnt Ob-
fiructic ns of' the \ i cera, &5c.
EPITOME, an Abridgment, or Redu tion, of the prin-
cipal Matters of a larger Book, into  a little Compafs.
See Al RIPGMENT.
The Epitome of Bgronizis's Annals is done by Shonde -
glernier has made an Epitohie of the Philolbphy of
Gaffendiis.
'Tis a popular Objection againfi the Epitomnizing of
Authors, that it frequently occasions the Lofs of the Orighinals.
Thus the Lofs of the Hiflorian T ogzis Popezis, is at-
tributed to his Epitomnizer 7fin;   and the J.ofl of a
great Part of Livy to Lu. Foras.
The Word is Greek, tari iqm', form'd of £ Y-4Vm, refecare,
to retrench, abridge, or cut oSf.
EPITRITUS, a Foot of the antient Latin Verfe, con-
fifting of four Syllables. See FOOv.
Grammarians reckon four Species of Epitrites: The
firiL compounded of an 7ambnus and Slondee, as Splits tir.
The fecond   of a 7-rochee  and Spondee,   as Comctst;.
The third of a Spondee and an Jahi bus, as ComunicAn:.
And the fourth of a Spondee and irochee, as scaare.0
EPITROPE, in Rhetoric, a Figure of Speech, by the
Latins call'd Conce/j/o; whereby the Orator grants fome-
thing which he might deny ; that, by this Shew of Im-
partiality, he may the more eafily be granted what he
requires, in his Turn. See FIGURE.
This Figure is frequently invidious: Let them extol
his Probity; I acquiesce and am ready to be filent: But
when they propofe him for a Pattern of Wit, my Spleen.
is rais'd, E5c.
EPITROPUS, a Kind of Judge, or rather Arbitrator,
which the Greek Chriflians, under the Dominion of the
f'lrks, elect, in the feveral Cities, to terminate the Diffe-
rences that arife among them; and avoid carrying them
before the T'urkijh Magifirates.
There are feveral Epitropi in each City : Monf Spov,
in his Travels, obfervcs, that at 4theas there are Eight,
taken out of the feveral Parifhes, and call'd !/ecclar~di,
i. .


EPI


EPI