antimacassar
noun
- small mat, often of crochet-work, placed over furniture to prevent soiling of the fabric
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˌæn.tɪ.məˈkæs.ə/ / /ˌæn.tɪ.məˈkæs.ɚ/
noun
Etymology: From anti- + macassar. Antimacassars were originally used to protect upholstery from being soiled by macassar oil in the sitter's hair.
- A cover for the back or arms of a chair or sofa.
“She was particularly fond of animals, and, besides her canary, whose cage hung on a nail in the massive wall of the keep by day, to the great annoyance of prisoners who relished an after-dinner nap, and was shrouded in an antimacassar on the parlour table at night, she kept several piebald mice and a restless revolving squirrel.”
“[…] how could anyone on a three-legged stool under the high top of the sofa sleep? Especially if the fringe of an antimacassar lolled over the top and tickled your neck?”