faldstool

Faldstool (from the O.H. Ger. falden or falten, "to fold," and stuol, Mod. Ger. Stuhl, "stool"; from the medieval Latin faldistolium derived, through the old form fauesteuil, from the Mod. Fr. fautcuil) is a portable folding chair, used by a bishop when not occupying the throne in his own cathedral, or when officiating in a cathedral or church other than his own; hence any movable folding stool used during divine service.

Its liturgical use likely came from the campstool used by military commanders in the field, being the ceremonial chair that accompanied the bishop in his official visitations. The bishop will either use the faldstool as a seat, or kneel in front of it, resting his forearms on it in prayer like a prie-dieu, depending upon the rubrical requirements. Other prelates may be granted the use of a faldstool during services, with certain limitations. The faldstool may be covered with silk cloth in red, green or violet, depending upon the liturgical season or the rank of the prelate.

The term also describes the small, cushioned stool at which the British sovereign kneels at his coronation.

In the Anglican Church, a faldstool is a desk at which a litany is recited.

The term faldistory has a similar meaning.

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
• American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (Houghton-Mifflin Co. Boston, 1973), s.v., "faldstool".

External links

• Faldstool article in the online edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia, 1913