triptych

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 12, 2008 is: triptych • \TRIP-tik\  • noun 1 : an ancient Roman writing tablet with three waxed leaves hinged together 2 a : a picture (as an altarpiece) or carving in three panels side by side b : something composed or presented in three parts or sections; especially : trilogy Examples: The artist unveiled an elaborate triptych in which the three panels represented the past, present, and future. Did you know? A painted or carved triptych typically has three hinged panels, and the two outer panels can be folded in towards the central one. A literary or musical triptych generally consists of three closely related or contrasting themes or parts. "Triptych" derives from the Greek "triptychos" ("having three folds"), formed by combining "tri-" ("three") and "ptyche" ("fold" or "layer"). Although "triptych" originally described a specific type of Roman writing tablet that had three hinged sections, it is not surprising that the idea was generalized first to a type of painting, and then to anything composed of three parts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.