salon French, meaning "living room" or "parlor"; here, it means a weekly or monthly gathering of artists and intellectuals.
sanguine healthy looking; optimistic.
Satyricon "Book of Satyrlike Adventures"; a first-century-A.D. comic novel attributed to Petronius.
Schubert Franz Schubert (1797–1828), Austrian composer.
Schumann Robert Schumann (1810–56) was a German composer.
Scotland Yard headquarters of the London Metropolitan Police, housed at New Scotland Yard on the Thames embankment.
scurf scaly or shredded dry skin.
Seine the river that runs through Paris.
sentinel one who keeps guard; a sentry.
Sèvres an exquisite porcelain made in Sèvres, France.
She brought me up to royalties Here, the reference is to frequent dinners and parties with the titled upper class.
skeins lengths of thread or yarn wound into long, loose coils.
sovereign a gold coin formerly used in Great Britain, worth one pound.
sphinx a figure with the body of a lion and the head of a man, ram, or hawk.
staccato here, rapid, short, crisp words.
stars and garters a reference to various public decorations such as the Order of the Garter, England's highest order of knighthood.
straggling woodbine In the United States, woodbine is called wild honeysuckle and is sometimes referred to as Virginia creeper.
subaltern the lowest rank of military officer.
super-cargo an officer on a merchant ship who is in charge of the cargo.
supercilious disdainful, scornful, acting superior.
Symbolistes French, meaning "Symbolists." The term refers to the literary and artistic movement begun by French poets in the nineteenth century that spread throughout Europe and America, influencing painting and drama; closely associated with Aestheticism, it advocated individual freedom even in themes of decay, ruin, and the bizarre.
tableau French, "picture"; a scene on stage in which the actors remain silent and motionless as if in a picture.
taedium vitae Latin, "tedium of life."
Tartuffe a hypocrite; the word comes from Molière's Le Tartuffe, a play in which the lead character — Tartuffe — almost destroys a family that has taken him in.
tawdry gaudy; cheap; vulgarly ornamental.
the Academy The Royal Academy of Arts in London, founded in 1768. Its annual exhibition, which has been held every summer without a break since 1769, features the best 1,500 paintings, sculptures, drawings, and engravings from those submitted for judging.
the bourdon note of a distant organ a bourdon note is an extremely low, droning note.
the East End the industrial or working class area of London, east of the banking and commercial section of London, referred to as "the City."
the Grosvenor For thirteen years, from 1877 to 1890, the Grosvenor Gallery was one of London's most prestigious galleries. During its heyday it often featured works from the Aesthetic movement, mentioned in Wilde's novel.
the long tussore-silk curtains brown silk from India, usually stronger but more coarsely woven than Chinese silk.
Thou knowest . . . speak tonight a quote from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene 2, 85–87.
Tintoret Tintoretto; original name, Jacopo Robusti (1518–94), Italian painter.
trellis a support frame.
tremulous vibrating or quivering.
trop d'audace French, meaning "too much audacity."
trop de zêle French, meaning "too much zeal."
truculent savage, belligerent.
ulster a long, loose overcoat made of heavy, strong fabric; originally made in Ulster, Ireland.
