green wax
Preserved but no longer current.
In old legal practice an estreat (certified extract from an official record> formerly delivered to the sheriff by the Ex- chequer for levy. It was under the seal of the court, which was impressed upon green wax.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “green wax” mean?
In old legal practice an estreat (certified extract from an official record> formerly delivered to the sheriff by the Ex- chequer for levy. It was under the seal of the court, which was impressed upon green wax.
Is “green wax” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.