an antiquarian's technique for copying designs from incised brass memorial slabs and the like.
a copy made by brass-rubbing.
the taking of an impression of an engraved brass tablet or plaque by placing a piece of paper over it and rubbing the paper with graphite, heelball, or chalk
an impression made in this way
First recorded in 1885–90
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The book is essentially a brass-rubbing on the tomb of a dead society.
From Time Magazine Archive
Spillikins, brass-rubbing, the Near Eastern Question, or anything like that?
From Psmith in the City by Wodehouse, P. G. (Pelham Grenville)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
