period piece

American  

noun

1. something, as a novel, painting, or building, of interest or value primarily because it evokes or epitomizes a particular period of history.

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period piece British  

noun

1. an object, a piece of music, a play, etc, valued for its quality of evoking a particular historical period: often one regarded as of little except historical interest

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Etymology

Origin of period piece

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

“Sinners” prioritizes the moment in time in which the fright occurs — both visually and sonically — making it as much a period piece as it is a movie with vampires in it.

From Los Angeles Times

“Sinners” is a supernatural horror movie, an action movie, a period piece and a partial musical.

From Salon

“I got a lot of period piece offers, but I did not want to do any more period pieces after ‘Game of Thrones,’ mainly because of the temperature,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s a traditional sort of U.K. series, a well-dressed postwar period piece with an eccentric detective at its center.

From Los Angeles Times

I’d love to be in more contemporary things, but I’m just naturally someone who loves period pieces.

From The Wall Street Journal