Zeno, Nicolo

Born about 1340: died about in the "Orlando Furioso" of Ariosto. Zerbst (tserpst). A town in Anhalt, Germany, situated on the Nuthe 22 miles southeast of Magdeburg. It has varied manufactures, a noted cas tle, a Rathaus, and a church of St. Nicholas. It was formerly the residence of the princes of Anhalt-Zerbst. Pop ulation (1890), 16,181. Zerlina (dzer-lē'nä). 1. One of the principal characters in Mozart's opera "Don Giovanni," affianced to Masetto. - 2. A character in Auber's "Fra Diavolo." Zermatt (tser-mät' or zer-mät'). A village in the canton of Valais, Switzerland, situated in the Matter Thal in lat. 46° 1' N., long. 7° 44′ E.: a famous tourist center. It is in the neighborhood of the Matter horn, Monte Rosa, Gorner Grat, Riffelberg, and Théodule Pa . Elevation, 5,315 feet. Zerubbabel (ze-rub'a-bel). [Heb., 'begotten in Babylon.'] Son of Shealtiel, and grandson of King Jehoiachin. His Babylonian name was Sheshbazzar. He and Joshua, grandson of the high priest Seraiah, led the first colony of exiles (about 42,000) who returned from the captivity to Judea. He was invested by Cyrus with the office of governor ( pech ah ) of the province which the exiles were to occupy. He began and promoted the rebuilding of the temple. Later he resigned the leader ship, and probably returned to Babylon. Zetes (zē'tēz). [Gr. Ζήτης.] In cla ical my thology, a son of Boreas. Zethos (ze'thos). [Gr. Ζῆθος .] In Greek my thology, the brother of Amphion. Zetland Islands. See Shetland Islands . America. A narrative of his discoveries, with map, was published by Carlo Zeno in 1558 (edited by the Hakluyt Society in 1873). Zenobia (ze-no'bi-ä). Died after 274. Queen of Palmyra, wife of Odenathus, ruler of Palmyra. She was joint ruler in her husband's lifetime, and succeeded him in 271 as regent for her son and as queen. Her armies were defeated by Aurelian in 271; Palmyra was besieged and taken in 272; and she was captured and brought to Rome. Zenobia. In Hawthorne's "Blithe dale Romance," an impulsive, pa ionate woman who drowns herself. At length the body is found, and poor Zenobia is brought to the shore with her knees still bent in the attitude of prayer, and her hands clenched in immitigable defiance. Foster tries in vain to straighten the dead limbs. As the teller of the story gazes at her, the grimly ludicrous reflection occurs to him that if Zenobia had foreseen all "the ugly circumstances of death-how ill it would become her, the altogether unseemly aspect which she must put on, and especially old Silas Foster's efforts to improve the matter-she would no more have committed the dreadful act than have exhibited herself to a public a embly in a badly fitting garment."