curiosa

American  

[kyoor-ee-oh-suh] / ˌkyʊər iˈoʊ sə /

plural noun

1. books, pamphlets, etc., dealing with unusual subjects.

2. (in selling and collecting books) books, pamphlets, etc., containing pornographic literature or art; erotica.

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curiosa British  

/ ˌkjʊərɪˈəʊsə /

noun

1. curiosities

2. books on strange subjects, esp erotica

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Etymology

Origin of curiosa

1880–85; < New Latin: unusual things, special use of neuter plural of Latin cūriōsus careful, inquisitive. See curious

Example Sentences

As is the case with most pop culture curiosa, “Shōgun” only deserves partial credit or blame for escalating America’s fetishizing of Japanese style and customs.

From Salon • Mar. 8, 2024

The brothers were touring the Mütter Museum, a 19th-century repository of curiosa at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, garbed somewhat disappointingly in chinos and sweaters.

From New York Times • Oct. 15, 2010

Among other curiosa, Dealer Hamilton has a 1969 letter from Patty Hearst valued by the seller at $1,000.

From Time Magazine Archive

Hydrophones have recorded clamors that have been sold as phonographic curiosa, but . . . it is not the reality of the sea .

From Time Magazine Archive

Here," says Johnson of the Eloisa to Abelard, the most important of the two, "is particularly observable the curiosa felicitas, a fruitful soil and careful cultivation.

From Alexander Pope English Men of Letters Series by Stephen, Leslie, Sir