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Stage 1 of 3
minium
Latin · ancient
"red lead pigment"
red lead pigment, used by scribes to highlight initial letters in manuscripts
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Stage 2 of 3
miniatura
Italian · medieval
"small, detailed manuscript illustration"
settled in Italian for the art of illustrating manuscripts with small, detailed pictures
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Stage 3 of 3
miniature
English · 1580s
"a very small version of something"
reinterpreted through association with minus (small) to mean anything tiny
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