Lentorama 2013: There's a Name for That

Day 30: pall

So the partner to yesterday's corporal is the pall, a stiff card covered in white linen (and usually embroidered with a cross and/or other appropriate symbols) that's put over the chalice to keep things from falling in. Don't want any houseflies getting into the Blood of Christ.

There term pall is also used to describe the cloth that covers a casket during a funeral. These palls started as cloths similar to other vestments, then became black, and are now white with a large cross design. In either case, the term pall refers back to the burial shroud of Jesus, bringing everything back around with regards to the Eucharist.