Lentorama 2013: There's a Name for That

Day 14: aspergillum

If you've ever seen a priest sprinkle holy water on parishoners using some sort of stick, you've seen the aspergillum in action. It's either a brush (which more closely represents the description of an aspergillum that appears in Leviticus) or a metal ball with small holes, which is dipped into a bowl of holy water (the bowl has its own name, too: aspersorium) and then shaken to get the water onto the people. Some of these have a sponge or other reservoir in them to capture more water.

Fun fact: this gave its name to the Aspergillus species of mold, as they were said to resemble the water shakers by the man (who was also a priest) who first recorded the mold's appearance.