sudarium

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   in ancient Rome, a small linen cloth carried for wiping perspiration from the face; a handkerchief

   The senator dabbed his forehead with a folded sudarium.

2. 2
   noun

   Christian liturgy: any of several ceremonial cloths or veils derived from the Roman handkerchief, including cloths associated with a crozier, paten, or sacred vessels

   The sacristy inventory listed embroidered sudaria among the altar linens and chalice veils.

3. 3
   noun

   a devotional image or relic associated with the cloth believed to have covered or wiped the face of Jesus, especially the Veil of Veronica or Sudarium of Oviedo

   Pilgrims gathered to view the sudarium preserved in the cathedral.

Borrowed from Latin sudarium, 'cloth for wiping sweat,' from sudare, 'to sweat,' and ultimately sudor, 'sweat.' Roman handkerchiefs acquired ceremonial uses that passed into Christian liturgy, while the name also became attached to devotional face-cloth relics and images.

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