Periamma, a cross of gold that hung from the nock, and was a distinctive ornament of a bishop's dress. See Bishop.
Periammata. See Phylactery.
Periboleeon. See Pallium.
Peribolon (Trepi'iSoXov), the outer enclosure of ancient Christian churches, being the utmost bounds allowed for refuge or sanctuary. See Asylum.
Peribolos. See Peribolon.
Pericopse, the lessons or divisions of Scripture read in the early Church, after the style of the Jewish jmi-.ishiofh. It is doubtful when the custom origi- nated, but the necessitj' of it pleads for its antiquity.
Peri'da (Neh. vii, 57). See Peruda.
Perier, Marguerite, a French inmate of Port- Roj'al, noted for a pretended miraculous cure upon her person, Avhich has been the subject of much con- troversy in the Church, was the daughter of M. Perier, magistrate at Clermont, and niece of Blaise and Jac- queline Pascal. She was born about 1G45. When about eight years old she was afflicted with fistnla lachrymalis in the left eye, and the disease was of so virulent a character that when she had attained the age of eleven years the bones of the nose and palate had become carious. Medical treatment proved un- availing; and as the child grew worse it was de- cided, as a last resource, to ajiply the cautery, though with little hope of success. She was at this time a pupil in the convent of Port-Poyal at Paris. The sis- terliood just then received from a priest named La Poterie a reliquary containing what claimed to be a portion of the crown of thorns which pierced the head of the Redeemer. This was carried in procession to the altar of the convent chapel on Blarch 24, 1G5G, be-
ing Fridaj' of the tliiid week in Lent. The nuns, in turn, kissed the sacred relic ; and when the pension- naires approached for the same purpose, their governess, sister Flavia, desired Mademoiselle Perier to commend herself to God, and apply the reliquary to the diseased eye. She did so, and is claimed to have been con- scious of a complete and instantaneous cure. The occurrence was mentioned in the convent next day, but was not generally' known till a week afterwards. "When the surgeon, M. Dalence, called to see his pa- tient, such was the change in her appearance that it was only after a most minute and careful examina- tion that he was convinced of her identity and of the realit}' of the cure, which he declared unaccountable on any other than supernatural grounds. The news spreading through the city, the queen despatched her own surgeon to Port-Ro3'al to verify the facts. He and other medical witnesses attested the genuineness of the cure, and pronounced it beyond the operation of natural causes. Their testimony was confirmed by the ecclesiastical authorities ; and the grand vicars published a formal recognition of the truth of the mir- acle. Solemn thanksgivings were offered in the church at Port-Royal, and the holy thorn was presented to the convent, where it was exposed everj^ Friday for the veneration of the faithful. This miracle was con- sidered important from the bearing which it had on the Jansenistic controversy then agitating the Rom- ish Church, being thought to be a special indication of God's favor to and his direct interference in behalf of the persecuted Jansenists (q. v.). Demoiselle Mar- guerite Perier died in 1733. Of course Protestants refuse to give credence to the cure as of miraculous order, and would account for it on psychological ))rin- ciples as the best interpretation of the case. See Mir- acles, Ecclesiastical, (J. H. W.)
Perignon, Pierre, a French Benedictine, was born about 1640 at Sainte-Menehould. He belonged to the congregation of Sainte-Vannes. In his capacity of procurator of the abbey of Hautvilliers, he was charged with the care of the vineyards. Gifted with an extreme delicacy of taste, he could distinguish, without ever mistaking, between the grapes coming from the different growths of Champagne. He ren- dered a great service to this province bj^ showing how to combine the different kinds to give to its wine that delicacy and strength which have since gained it such a great reputation. But, far from keeping for himself or for his convent the secret of its manufact- ure, he was eager to divulge it in his Memoires sur la mani'ere de choidr les plantes de vigne conremihles au sol, sur la Jagon de les provigncr, de les tailler, de melanger les raisins, d'en faire la ciieil/etfe et de gou- verner les vins. The author was a learned man and of austere manners. He died Sept. 14, 1715, at Haut- villiers, near lipernay. See Hist, de la Congreg. de Sainte-Vannes. — Hoefer, Noiw. Biog. Generale, xxxix, 008.
Period, a term used in chronology in the same sense as Cycle (q. v.), to denote an interval of time after which the astronomical phenomena to which it refers recur in the same order. It is also employed to signify a cycle of cycles. Various periods have been invented by astronomers, but we can only notice a few of the most important. See Epoch.
1. The Chaldceans invented the Chaldaic Period, or Period of Eclipses, from observing that, after a certain number of revolutions of the moon around the earth, her eclipses recurred in the same order and of the same magnitude. This period consists of 223 luna- tions, or G798.28 days, and corresponds almost exactly to a complete revolution of the moon's node.