Illustrated Companion to the Latin Dictionary/Musculus

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Rich, Anthony (1849). The illustrated companion to the Latin dictionary, and Greek lexicon. p. vi. OCLC 894670115. https://archive.org/details/illustratedcompa00rich. 

MUS'CULUS. A contrivance employed in sieges for covering and protecting the men from the enemy's missiles whilst engaged in throwing up their earth works, and making their approaches to the walls. The manner in which it was constructed is detailed at length by Caesar (B. C. ii. 10.) and Vegetius (Mil. iv. 16.); but no representation of the object itself, except conjectural ones, exists; amongst these the one designed by Guischard (Mémoires Milit. tom. ii. p. 58. tab. 2.), affords a good practical illustration to the text of Caesar.

2. A small sailing vessel of extremely short dimensions between stem and stern (Isidor. Orig. xix. 1. 14. Not. Tir. p. 178.); the characteristic build as well as the name of which is retained by the Venetians, who still use the name of topo, the mouse, to distinguish a particular kind of small craft, amongst the many different ones which trade in their waters.