A decorative frame or oval enclosure, especially an ornamental cartouche used in classical architecture or Egyptian hieroglyphics.
From French 'cartouche,' derived from Italian 'cartoccio' (paper roll or cartridge). The term was applied to the oval frames containing Egyptian pharaohs' names, and later to ornamental scrollwork in architecture.
Egyptian cartouches were literally the ancient world's ID badges—Egyptologists can identify which pharaoh commissioned a temple just by reading the hieroglyphics inside these ornate ovals, making them key to deciphering ancient history.
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