tarnhelmn.
In Wagner's opera Der Ring des Nibelungen, a magic helmet which either secures the invisibility of the wearer or enables him to change his appearance at will; = tarn-cap n. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [noun] > magical object > cap of invisibility
tarn-cap1856
tarnhelm1877
1877 A. Forman tr. Wagner's Nibelung's Ring: Rhinegold 45 (stage direct.) He puts the..‘Tarn-helm’ on his head... His figure disappears; in his place a pillar of cloud is seen.
1877 A. Forman tr. Wagner's Nibelung's Ring: Rhinegold 57 (stage direct.) He puts the tarn~helm on again... He disappears; the gods perceive..a toad creeping towards them.
1896 G. B. Shaw in Star 22 July 1/7 The magical strangeness of the wishing cap or ‘tarnhelm’.
a1930 D. H. Lawrence Sex, Lit. & Censorship (1955) 84 It is something in her will. It is her tarnhelm.
Derivatives
ˈtarn-helmed adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [adjective] > invested with magic powers > of cap
tarn-helmed1971
1971 Daily Tel. 4 Oct. 13/3 The fateful ring is grabbed by the tarnhelmed Siegfried.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1986; most recently modified version published online December 2020).
<
n.1877