What vestiges of liberty or property have they left?
--Burke.
Ridicule has followed the vestiges of Truth, but never
usurped her place. --Landor.
Syn: Trace; mark; sign; token.
Usage: {Vestige}, {Trace}. These words agree in marking some
indications of the past, but differ to some extent in
their use and application. Vestige is used chiefly in
a figurative sense, for the remains something long
passed away; as, the vestiges of ancient times;
vestiges of the creation. A trace is literally
something drawn out in a line, and may be used in this
its primary sense, or figuratively, to denote a sign
or evidence left by something that has passed by, or
ceased to exist. Vestige usually supposes some
definite object of the past to be left behind; while a
trace may be a mere indication that something has been
present or is present; as, traces of former
population; a trace of poison in a given substance.