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Webster 1913 Edition

Testudo

‖

Tes-tu′do

,
Noun.
;
pl.
Testudines
(#)
.
[L., from
testa
the shell of shellfish, or of testaceous animals.]
1.
(Zool.)
A genus of tortoises which formerly included a large number of diverse forms, but is now restricted to certain terrestrial species, such as the European land tortoise (
Testudo Graeca
) and the gopher of the Southern United States.
2.
(Rom. Antiq.)
A cover or screen which a body of troops formed with their shields or targets, by holding them over their heads when standing close to each other. This cover resembled the back of a tortoise, and served to shelter the men from darts, stones, and other missiles. A similar defense was sometimes formed of boards, and moved on wheels.
3.
(Mus.)
A kind of musical instrument. a species of lyre; – so called in allusion to the lyre of Mercury, fabled to have been made of the shell of a tortoise.

Webster 1828 Edition

Testudo

TESTU'DO

,
Noun.
[L.] A tortoise. Among the Romans, a cover or screen which a body of troops formed with their shields or targets, by holding them over their heads when standing close to each other. This cover resembled the back of a tortoise, and served to shelter the men from darts, stones, and other missiles. A similar defense was sometimes formed of boards and moved on wheels.
1.
In medicine, a broad soft tumor between the skull and the skin, called also talpa or mole, as resembling the subterraneous windings of the tortoise or mole.

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