Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 13.djvu/757

MOLD. 679 MOLE. growths whose fructification has the form of bhuk licads on upri<.'lit filaments, the commonest being the bread mold (Mucor). See PnYCOiiY- CETES. MOLDAU, raol'dou (Bohem. Vitava). The chief river of Bohemia, and an important triliu- tary of the Elbe (Map: Austria, D 2 ) . Jt rises in the Bdhmerwald. on the sontlnvest frontier, at an elevation of 3800 feet above the sea, and Hows first southeast, then northward past the city of Prague, and enters the Elbe opposite Jlelnik, after a course of 265 miles. It becomes naviga- ble at Budweis. MOLDA'VIA. A former principality in Southeastern Europe, now forming, together with Wallachia (q.v.) and the Dobrudja (i|.v. ). the Kingdom of Rumania (Map: Balkan Peninsula. El). It is bounded on the north and east by the Pruth, which separates it from Russia ; on the south by Wallachia, and on the west by Transyl- vania. Area, 14,068 square miles. Population, in 1890, 1.8.32,106. The chief town is Jassy, the capital of the principality. For further descrip- tion, see Rl'Maxi.. History. The Principality of Moldavia was founded about the middle of the fourteenth cen- turj' by the Wallach Voivode Bogdan. Its cradle appears to have been in the northeastern Car- pathians, near the sources of the Theiss. It soon grew to be a large State, embracing, in addition to the present Moldavia, Bukowina and Bessa- rabia. The dominion over this region was coveted by the kings of Poland and Hungarj', and the !^Ioldavian princes leaned now on the one power and now on the other, neither being able perma- nently to assert its over-lordship. Prince Stephen the Great was a powerful ruler ( 14o7-1504). He defied the armie.s of the great Sultan, Mohammed II., winning a signal victory over the Turks at Eakova in 147.5. His successors, however, were unable to withstand the growing power of the Jloslems. and early in the sixteenth century !Mol- davia became tributary to the Porte. The Turks proceeded to build fortresses in the Moldavian territory, and their hold on the country was gradually tightened, although Jloldavia re- mained without the sphere of Turkish settle- ment. From the early part of the eighteenth century down to the outbreak of the Greek Revo- lution in 1821. which began with Ypsilanti's brave deed at Jassi, Moldavia, as well as Wal- lachia. was gov-erned by hospodars appointed by the Sultan, from the aristocratic Greek families, known as Fanariotes. The ambitious designs of Piussia in the direction of dominion in the regions held in subjection by the Turks — designs which she sought to advance by claiming a protectorate over the Greek Christians in the Turkisb do- minions — violently afl'ected the fortinies of Mol- davia, which lay in the path of the Russian armies, and was repeatedly subjected to Russian occupation. In 1812 Bessarabia was ceded by Turkey to Russia, Bukowina having been previ- ously (1777) annexed to Austria. After 1821 native princes were once more at the head of the government. But the protectorate accorded to Russia by Turkey in the Treaty of Adrianople (1829) threatened to make IMoldavia and Wal- lachia mere dependencies of the Russian Empire. All this was changed by the results of the Cri- mean War, terminated by the Treaty of Paris (1850). In 1859-61 the union of Moldavia and Wallachia into the Principality of Rumania wag consununated. See Rumania. MOLDING. See Founding. MOLDING (from mould, OF. moller, moler, moler, Fr. moulrr, Sp., Port, moldar, to measure, from Lat. morliilare, to measure, from niodulus, measure, diminutive of niodiis, measure, melody, manner, mode). A curved, plane, or irregular surface used as an ornament in cornices, panel.s, arches, etc., and in all enriched apertures and members of buildings. Their projections form the main element of light and siiade in architec- ture. There has been an almost continuous in- crease in their varietv and richness in architec- tural history. Babylonia, EgA'pt, Assyria, and other early nations produced their efi'ects more by color than projections and were satisfied with a few simple forms such as the fillet, cavetto, ovals and torus. In classic architecture the moldings are few in number, and definitely fixed in their forms. There are eight kinds, viz. : the ct/ma. the ovolo (or echiiins). the talon, the cavetto, the torus, the astragal, the scotia, and the fillet, each of these moldings having its proper place assigned to it in eacli order. (See Column.) A great variety of effect, however. Is secured, especially in the Ionic and Corinthian orders, by the carved surface ornamentation on the moldings, forming such systems as the egg- and-dart, the anthemion, the pearl, heart-leaf, and other variations. With the decline of classic architecture in the fourth century moldings went out of fashion — partly through inability to carve their ornamen- tation (as in the West), partly through a prefer- ence for color eft'ects (as in the Byzantine style). But with the rise of medianai art. especially where vaulting was used, and heavy walls became necessary, they again came into use. The doors and windows, which had always been simple in outline in ancient architecture, were deep-set re- cesses, and heavily-molded. In Romanesque ar- chitecture, unlike the Classic, these openings were the main molding focus; piers, vaulting- ribs, and cornices were very subsidiary. In the Gothic style the use of moldings was extended to almost the entire surface of a structure, through the use of tracery, false galleries, and the lace- like decoration of surfaces. In these mediaeval styles the moldings are not reduced to a system as in the Greek and Roman styles, but may be used in every variety of form at the pleasure of the artist. Roman- esque moldings were decorated with geometric and with stitl' and conventional foliated orna- ment, often copied from classic models, while CJothic architecture broke from tradition, orna- menting its molded surfaces largely with foli- ated designs freely cojiicd from nature with be- wildering variety ami truthfulness. The Renais- sance naturally abandoned the wealth of Gothic ornamented moldings and returned to classic simplicity, copying ancient models with great accuracy and adding but little to the ancient material, even in decorative details. For details consult the articles on the ditTerent historic styles and the special moldings. MOLE (abbreviation of molrwarp, moldwarp, 'MOuhUrnrp. OHG. mnlltrcrf, nniltirerf. Ger. Maul- iviirf, from AS. mohir, dust + weorpan. Goth. wairpan, OHG. verfan. Ger. werfen, to throw). A small mammal belonging to the order Insecti-