among the ancient Greeks, denoted the apartment of the women (always in the innermost part of the house), where they employed themselves in spinning, weaving, and needlework. At Rome, under the emperors, there was a particular establishment of gynaeceum, which were a kind of manufactories in which women were employed to make clothes and furniture for the imperial household. Hence the term has sometimes been applied in modern times to silk factories and others where females are associated in considerable numbers.