Ar"ti*fice (?), n. [L. artificium,
fr. artifex artificer; ars, artis, art + facere
to make: cf. F. artifice.] 1. A handicraft; a
trade; art of making. [Obs.]
2. Workmanship; a skillfully contrived
work.
The material universe.. in the artifice of God, the
artifice of the best Mechanist.
Cudworth.
3. Artful or skillful contrivance.
His [Congreve's] plots were constructed without much
artifice.
Craik.
4. Crafty device; an artful, ingenious, or
elaborate trick. [Now the usual meaning.]
Those who were conscious of guilt employed numerous
artifices for the purpose of averting inquiry.
Macaulay.