Meaning & use

reliquary

noun·Advanced

A container, often ornately decorated, used to hold and display sacred relics.

See it in a sentence

The cathedral displayed a gold reliquary said to contain a fragment of an ancient saint's bone.

Pilgrims traveled for weeks to see the famous reliquary housed in the abbey.

A note on using this word

Reliquaries were especially common in medieval Christian churches, often crafted from precious metals and gemstones.

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