Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
assemblage hermétique
English translation:
very tightly assembled
Added to glossary by
angela3thomas
Apr 26, 2017 21:55
7 yrs ago
French term
assemblage hermétique
French to English
Art/Literary
Archaeology
ancient art
Hi!
DOC: 1907 Museum catalog of ancient Egyptian mirrors. Catalog entries.
CONTEXTS & ATTEMPTS:
1. Assemblage à coins, très hermétique.
Assembled with wedges, very tight.
2. Assemblage hermétique, sans coin, ni mastic, par le forçage de la tige dans la mortaise.
Tight assembly, without a wedge or mastic [+achieved] by forcing/shoving the tang into the mortise.
ISSUE: This is so clunky, any ideas on how to smooth it out while staying true to the French?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
DOC: 1907 Museum catalog of ancient Egyptian mirrors. Catalog entries.
CONTEXTS & ATTEMPTS:
1. Assemblage à coins, très hermétique.
Assembled with wedges, very tight.
2. Assemblage hermétique, sans coin, ni mastic, par le forçage de la tige dans la mortaise.
Tight assembly, without a wedge or mastic [+achieved] by forcing/shoving the tang into the mortise.
ISSUE: This is so clunky, any ideas on how to smooth it out while staying true to the French?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
Proposed translations
(English)
4 | very tightly assembled |
Christopher Crockett
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3 +1 | tight mounting/tight assembly |
Raoul COLIN (X)
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References
hermetic assembly |
José Patrício
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Proposed translations
15 hrs
Selected
very tightly assembled
1. Very tightly assembled, using wedges.
2. Very tightly assembled, without the use of either wedges or mastic, but simply by forcing the tang into the mortise.
Seems to me that "hermétique" here is an example of the kind of flowery French which we have seen used before by this somewhat romantically inclined author; it certainly cannot be applied literally to this situation so "very tight[ly]" is the best we can due in our crude, insensitive English.
2. Very tightly assembled, without the use of either wedges or mastic, but simply by forcing the tang into the mortise.
Seems to me that "hermétique" here is an example of the kind of flowery French which we have seen used before by this somewhat romantically inclined author; it certainly cannot be applied literally to this situation so "very tight[ly]" is the best we can due in our crude, insensitive English.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you!"
+1
12 hrs
tight mounting/tight assembly
tight - hermétique/serré - usual translations
Reference comments
37 mins
Reference:
hermetic assembly
According to the sense of the text it can have the meanings:
1.
(of a seal or closure) complete and airtight.
"a hermetic seal that ensures perfect waterproofing"
synonyms:
airtight, tight, sealed, shut; More
watertight, waterproof
"a hermetic seal that ensures perfect waterproofing"
insulated or protected from outside influences.
"a hermetic society"
2.
relating to an ancient occult tradition encompassing alchemy, astrology, and theosophy.
"some saw in the Hermetic texts an anticipation of Christianity"
1.
(of a seal or closure) complete and airtight.
"a hermetic seal that ensures perfect waterproofing"
synonyms:
airtight, tight, sealed, shut; More
watertight, waterproof
"a hermetic seal that ensures perfect waterproofing"
insulated or protected from outside influences.
"a hermetic society"
2.
relating to an ancient occult tradition encompassing alchemy, astrology, and theosophy.
"some saw in the Hermetic texts an anticipation of Christianity"
Peer comments on this reference comment:
agree |
Christopher Crockett
: Thanks for the reference --but it makes it clear that we cannot take Bénédite literally here. The guy is an aspiring poet.
14 hrs
|
OK, thanks
|
Discussion
This page
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interference_fit
notes that heat can sometimes be used to expand one or the other element, which might make the forced joint even stronger.
I certainly wouldn't put it past those crafty Egyptian metalworkers to have heated the mortise enough so that it might have gripped the tang even more tightly as it shrunk up when it cooled.
However, I would not use "friction fit" to describe what's going on here --Bénéditi doesn't use that term (I think he essentially just means a "very, very tight fit"), and it is technical enough that it might not be known to a wider audience.
And the venerable OED does, indeed, list some meanings for "quoin" as near synonyms for "wedge" --all specific to fields unrelated to that of 2k mirrors and most termed "rare" and/or "obs[cure]":
2.
a. Printing. A (typically wedge-shaped) device used to lock up a forme of type. Now chiefly hist.
b. Gunnery. A wedge-shaped block used for adjusting the elevation of the barrel of a cannon. Also: a wedge used to keep a cannon securely in position (cf. quoiner n.). Now chiefly hist.
c. Naut. A wedge placed between or among casks stored on a ship, so as to prevent them from moving. Now rare.
†d. Building. The keystone, or any one of the wedge-shaped stones, of an arch; = voussoir n. Obs. rare. [N.b. I've never seen this usage in the art historical literature.]
Looking at the picture of the object in question, anyone would say that the tang was firmly held in the mortise by "wedges" --so why not just use that common (yet precise) term?