SCREAMER (Palamedea cornuta), a bird inhabiting Guiana and the Amazon valley. About the size of a turkey, it is remark able for the slender "horn" more than Sin. long, on its crown, the two sharp spurs on each wing, and its long toes. Its plumage is mainly greyish-black above with some white and reddish-brown, while the lower parts are white. Related to this bird is Chauna chavaria, the "Crested Screamer," a name first bestowed on the Seriema (q.v.). This bird inhabits the lagoons and swamps of Paraguay and Southern Brazil, where it is called "Chaja" and is smaller than the preceding, wanting its "horn," but having a crest of feathers; the plumage is mainly grey. Its nest is of dry rushes, having its foundation in the water, and contains six eggs, which are white tinged with buff. The young are covered with yellowish-brown down. A singular habit of this bird is that of soaring in circles at an immense altitude in flocks uttering at intervals their far-reaching and melodious cry. They also sing on the ground (see W. H. Hudson, Naturalist in La Plata, who also records hearing over a hundred thousand burst into song together). The young are often reared by the people to defend their poultry, a duty which is faithfully and, owing to its spurs, successfully dis charged. Another curious property of this bird is a layer of air cells between the skin and the muscles, so that on the body being pressed a crackling is heard. In Central America the darker C. derbiana occurs. It is a smaller bird than the others, with slate-gray plumage and white throat.
The Palamedeidae are by many authors placed in a distinct order, Palamedeiformes, near the Anseres. (See ORNITHOLOGY.) SCREEN, in architecture, any one of various types of sub divisions between adjacent portions of the same open space. Thus the colonnades under the great arches in the tepidaria of certain Roman baths formed screens, mainly decorative, between the central space and alcoves or recesses at the ends and sides.
The term is especially used in ecclesiastical architecture for the railings, barriers or other dividing elements between chapels and the aisle or nave or around the choir. Chapel screens were usually open and consisted of an arcade of tracery or of a metal grille. Choir screens, on the other hand, were, in north and west Europe, largely solid, although relatively small in height, so that the services held behind them could be heard by those in the nave although the clergy and choir remained unseen. Of choir screens of this type, those of the cathedrals of Amiens and Chartres, both of the 15th century, are especially rich; in Eng land, that of York (1475-1505), Canterbury (15th century) and Exeter (first half 14th century) are noteworthy. In Italy the tradition of the early Christian bemas, ambones and low chancel railings dictated an entirely different type of screen; the chancel front of S. Miniato, near Florence, with its elaborately inlaid
marble parapet of the late iith and early 12th century is typical. With the coming of the Renaissance even this amount of separa tion was abandoned and in the great Renaissance churches of Italy the use of the screen as a separation for the choir dis appears. In Spain the high development of ironwork led to the extensive use of that material for both choir and chapel screens. This iron screen work. termed rejeria (q.v.), constitutes one of the most glorious adornments of the Spanish churches. (See JuBi, STALL.) (T. F. H.) Because of their fragile nature, no screens of great antiquity have survived, but references to them are not wanting in ancient literature. Folding screens were known in China as early as the 2nd century B.C., at which period glass or mica panellings for them are noted as of much value, their transparent nature afford ing both enjoyment of an outdoor view and shelter from the elements. Then, in the century preceding the Christian era, screens carved and inlaid with jade and other precious materials seem to have been produced. Already in this early period the art of painting screens was practised, for it is recorded that "Figures of Exemplary Women," illustrating the good or evil effects from right or wrong-doing were depicted on a screen. The Chinese artist Ts'ao Pu-hsing (3rd century) having dropped ink upon a screen while painting, turned it into a fly which Sun Ch`Lian (A.D. 181-252) tried to brush away. Shih Hu (3rd cen tury) made a folding screen covered with silk and painted with hermits, birds and animals, to which he added a long inscription. Chang Mo (4th century) depicted on screens the Buddhist saint, Vimalakirti, and a scene entitled "Beating Newly-woven Silk." In passing, mention may be made of a i4-fold screen in the scroll attributed to Ku K`ai-chih (4th century), owned by the British Museum, confirming the accuracy of contemporary ac counts that screens consisted of numerous leaves, sometimes as many as 40. In the 5th century, Lu Tan-wei painted a lion and Fang Huai-chen the "Paragons of Filial Piety." Landscapes were not unknown in these early centuries as themes for screens, for they are referred to in old poems and other writings. Screens of tapestry, of embroidery, of crystal and of lacquer are also recorded in contemporary literature. Moreover, fine calligraphy inscribing moral teachings or auspicious sentiments was executed on screens from the 5th century, if not earlier. It is said that Fang Hstiang-ling (A.D. 578-648) collected precepts from all sources and inscribed them on screens which he distributed among his children as reminders of proper conduct.