retable

[ri-tey-buh l, ree-tey-]

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noun

a decorative structure raised above an altar at the back, often forming a frame for a picture, bas-relief, or the like, and sometimes including a shelf or shelves, as for ornaments.

Nearby words

Origin of retable

1815–25; < French, equivalent to Old French re(re) at the back (< Latin retrō) + table table; compare Medieval Latin retrōtabulum

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for retable

The retable has two miracle reliefs, and between them a small bronze Christ, which has been put there in error.
Donatello|David Lindsay, Earl of Crawford
Above the retable is the Madonna with two saints on either side: the crucifix surmounts the whole composition.
Donatello|David Lindsay, Earl of Crawford
Another exquisite example of wood carving may be seen in the chapel of Notre-Dame de Compassion, forming the retable.
The Churches of Paris|S. Sophia Beale
On the retable at the foot of the reredos, stand two massive candlesticks of silver gilt.
Highways and Byways in Cambridge and Ely|Rev. Edward Conybeare.

In the ancient Abbey Church are two masterpieces, a retable in carved wood and a tomb ornamented with exquisite statuettes.
East of Paris|Matilda Betham-Edwards

British Dictionary definitions for retable

retable

noun

an ornamental screenlike structure above and behind an altar, esp one used as a setting for a religious picture or carving

Word Origin for retable

C19: from French, from Spanish retablo, from Latin retrō behind + tabula board; see rear 1, table

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

retable

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of retable

Examples from the Web for retable

retable

noun

Word Origin for retable