chirograph means A kind of medieval document written in duplicate (or more) on a single piece of parchment, then cut across a single word, so that each holder of a portion can prove it matches the others. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
Why “chirograph” is a great word
CHIROGRAPH — [Noun] A formal legal deed, originally a medieval document written in duplicate on a single sheet and then divided through a word or symbol to authenticate the matching parts. From Middle French chirographe, from Ancient Greek χειρόγραφος (kheirógraphos, "written with the hand"), from χείρ (kheír, "hand") + γράφω (gráphō, "write"); first attested in English in the late 13th century. Unlike a charter, which is a sovereign's foundational grant, or an autograph, prized as a personal signature, a chirograph is a bilateral contract whose authority resides in its severed physical form. It is the crisp tear through the vellum, the jagged puzzle-edge of a split word, and the perfect alignment of two separate halves to prove a singular, binding truth—a testament that trust was once so fragile it required a physical sacrament.
noun
- A kind of medieval document written in duplicate (or more) on a single piece of parchment, then cut across a single word, so that each holder of a portion can prove it matches the others.
- A papal decree whose circulation, unlike an encyclical, is limited to the Roman curia.
- The last part of a fine of land; the "foot of the fine".“a Record […]called the Chirograph, or Foot of the Fine”