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An antependium (from Latin ante- and pendēre, "to hang before"; : antependia), also known as a pulpit fall, parament or hanging, or, when speaking specifically of the hanging for the altar, an altar frontal (Latin: pallium altaris), is a decorative piece, usually of textile, but also metalwork, stone or other material, that can adorn a Christianity altar.
Antependium can also be used to describe the decorated front of the altar itself, especially if it is in an inflexible material such as wood, stone or metal.Murrays, 364
Specifically, and as the etymology of the word suggests, an antependium hangs down in front of whatever it covers, and is to be distinguished from the Altar cloth which are used in the service of the Eucharist, and an altar cloth which covers the top of the altar table ( mensa).
The true liturgical decoration of the altar and its oldest adornment is the frontal.
When the front of an altar is elaborately carved or painted, the additional cloth altar frontal normally reaches down only a few inches from the top of the altar table; this is called a “frontlet”. In other cases, it may reach to the floor (properly called a “frontal”). In both situations, it will usually cover the entire width of the altar. A “Jacobean frontal” will cover the entire altar, reaching down to the floor on all four sides if freestanding.
The Anglican Canons of 1603 order that the Lord's Table should be “covered, in time of Divine Service, with a carpet of silk or other decent stuff, thought meet by the ordinary of the place” (can. 82).Cross, F. L., ed. (1957) The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. London: Oxford University Press; p. 530
Covers for Lectern and Pulpit are generally similar to a frontlet, normally covering the “desk” of the lectern or pulpit, and hanging down about a foot or longer in front (visible to the congregation).
There is little information about the decoration of altars in the first four centuries of Christianity, however, from the 5th century onward there is evidence for the use of altar frontals. Palladius, writing in 421 CE, states that Roman ladies gave their silk dresses to form coverings for the altar.
The analogion (icon stands) are also covered with a covering known as a proskynitarion. As with the coverings used on the Holy Table, these may have only one outer covering, or include a second, inner covering hanging to the floor (though, in this case, sometimes only in the front and back).
By the 7th to 8th century rich materials were customary in the fabrication of an antependiums, particularly gold embroideries. From the 8th century onward antependia were often made from a variety of materials, including metal, gold, silver, gilt, and enamels.Murrays, 24
Italian Antependia
The earliest extant painted wooden antependium in Italian art is the one attributed to the Maestro di Tressa in the Pinacoteca Nazionale in Siena, Italy. It is dated 1215 and is tempera and gold on panel, embellished with pastiglia decoration to mimic metalwork. It is generally called "Il Paliotto del Salvatore" or the antependium of the Savior, paliotto being the Italian word for an antependium in any medium.Murrays, 364
The upper frame bears the inscription: Anno Domini Millesimo CCXV: mense Novembri: hec tabula facta est. (2025). 9788875762599, Betti editrice. ISBN 9788875762599 "In the year of the Lord, One thousand two hundred fifteen: in the month of November: this table was made."Editor's translation
The famous Pala d'Oro in St Mark's Basilica in Venice may have originated as an antependium, although early additions made it far too large, and it is used as a reredos.Murrays, 24
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