From the Greek “ana” (“backward”) and “khronos” (“time”), this adjective describes things that are out of place in time. It commonly applies to elements in works of art — but it could be accidental or on purpose. A careless writer might describe a style of weaponry that wasn’t invented until the 1900s as he’s penning a Revolutionary War epic. However, a painter could drop in elements of modern technology in a portrait of a classical figure as an anachronistic political statement. Anachronisms might carry a message, or they could be interesting challenges for careful observers to spot.