What does retable mean?
A retable is a decorated structure associated with a Christian altar, especially a panel painted or carved with sacred figures and scenes. It may stand behind the altar, rise above it, or include the altar table as part of its construction. Retables became especially prominent in European churches during the later Middle Ages, when elaborate altarpieces became common features of church interiors. Today the term is used mainly by art historians, historians, conservators, and clergy. It should not be confused with an altar in the broader sense: while an altar is the sacred table or platform on which the Eucharist is celebrated, a retable is principally the decorative framework or imagery connected with it. In ecclesiastical writing, retable can therefore refer either to the whole ornamental ensemble or more narrowly to its principal decorated panel.
nounAn ornamental panel or structure placed on or behind a Christian altar, often decorated with religious images and sometimes incorporating the altar table.
- An ornamental panel or structure associated with a Christian altar, especially one decorated with religious imagery.
"The medieval church preserves a richly carved retable depicting the lives of the saints."
"Gold leaf covers the figures carved into the church's fifteenth-century retable."
"The museum's gallery displays a portable retable that once stood behind an altar."
The standard plural is retables; retable is the singular form.
"Several portable retables were made for private chapels."
A retable can turn an altar into a visual storybook, using painted or carved panels to bring biblical scenes into the church.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does retable come from?
The word entered English from Old French retable, meaning the decorated structure behind an altar. Old French borrowed it from Medieval Latin retrotabulum, a compound formed from retro, meaning “behind,” and tabula, meaning “board” or “table.” Its development reflects the original arrangement of a decorated altar table or panel placed behind the altar.
How retable is actually used
Retable is chiefly a formal art-historical and ecclesiastical term. In British English it is also sometimes written re-table, although retable is the usual modern spelling.