tympanum

(tĭm'pə-nəm)

1. 1. Anatomy. See middle ear.
   2. See eardrum.
2. Zoology. A membranous external auditory structure, as in certain insects.
3. Architecture.
   1. The ornamental recessed space or panel enclosed by the cornices of a triangular pediment.
   2. A similar space between an arch and the lintel of a portal or window.
4. The diaphragm of a telephone.

[Medieval Latin, from Latin, drum, from Greek tumpanon.]

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Ancient hand drum, much used in Greece and Rome in association with the orgiastic cults of Dionysus and Cybele.

1. The triangular or segmental space enclosed between the horizontal cornice of a pediment and the underside of the raking or curved cornice above; sometimes decorated with decorative elements, sculpture, or a window. 2. Any space similarly marked off or bounded, as between the lintel of a door and the arch above.

tympanum, 1

1. the part of the cavity of the middle ear, in the temporal bone, just medial to the tympanic membrane.
2. the tympanic membrane itself.

• Drums - timpanum: tuned, orchestral kettledrum, mounted on footed base; pl. timpani

Look up timpanum in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Tympanum may refer to:

• Tympanum (architecture), an architectural element located within the arch or pediment
• Tympanum (zoology), a hearing organ/gland in frogs and toads, a flat red oval on both sides of a frog's head
• Tympanum, in biology, the eardrum
• Tympanum, a circular, drum-like rack on which victims were tortured.
• Timpano, in music, singular of timpani, a kettledrum
• Tympanum (hand drum), a percussion instrument in ancient Greece and Rome
• Tympanum, or tympanal organ, a hearing organ in insects
• Sakia, a type of waterwheel

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