The hero of the Nile
Preserved but no longer current.
Horatio, Lord Nelson (1758-1805). Nimbus (mm/ bus) (Lat., a cloud). In Chris- tian art a halo of light placed round the head of an eminent personage. There are three forms ; (1) Vesica piscis, or fish form {ep. ICHTHUS), used in representations of Christ and occasion- ally of the Virgin Mary, extending round the whole figure; (2) a circular halo; (3) radiated like a star or sun.
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 “The hero of the Nile” mean?
Horatio, Lord Nelson (1758-1805). Nimbus (mm/ bus) (Lat., a cloud). In Chris- tian art a halo of light placed round the head of an eminent personage. There are three forms ; (1) Vesica piscis, or fish form {ep. ICHTHUS), used in representations of Christ and occasion- ally of the Virgin Mary, extending round the whole figure; (2) a circular halo; (3) radiated like a star or sun.
Is “The hero of the Nile” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.