lost-wax casting: see cire perdue.

lost tribes, 10 Israelite tribes that, according to the Bible, were transported to Assyria by Tiglathpileser III or Shalmaneser after the conquest of Israel in 722 B.C. Numerous conjectures have been advanced as to the fate of these tribes: they have been identified with the people of Arabia, India, Ethiopia, and America (North, Central, South) and with other groups, including the Nestorians of Mesopotamia, the Afghans, the high-caste Hindus, and the holy Shindai class of Japan. The Anglo-Israelite theory identifies the English people with the lost tribes; it was, in the 17th cent., a factor in helping the Jews to reenter England. The identification of the Native North Americans with the 10 lost tribes figured in the writings of the early New England Christian theologians.

lost property: see finder.

Lost Dauphin: see Louis XVII, titular king of France.

Lost Battalion, in World War I, popular name given to those American units of the 77th Division—six companies of the 1st and 2d battalions of the 308th Infantry, one company of the 307th Infantry, and the platoons of the 306th Machine Gun Battalion—that were cut off by German forces after the launching of an American attack in the Argonne Forest in early Oct., 1918. The Lost Battalion, numbering about 600 men and under the command of Major Charles W. Whittlesey, put up a heroic five-day defense in the Binarville Ravine without food, water, or reserve ammunition. After withstanding several heavy barrages and attacks, the Lost Battalion, which defiantly refused the German demand of surrender, was rescued (Oct. 8, 1918) by American relief troops. Some 400 men of the Lost Battalion perished.

Traditional method of producing molds for metal sculpture and other castings. It requires a positive, a core made of refractory material and an outer layer of wax. The positive can be produced either by direct modeling in wax over a prepared core (direct lost-wax casting), or by casting in a piece mold or flexible mold taken from a master cast. The wax positive is invested with a mold made of refractory materials and heated to melt the wax, leaving a narrow cavity between the core and the investment. Molten metal is poured into this cavity. When the metal has solidified, the investment and core are broken away. Seealso investment casting.

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