Altarpiece

Abstract A decoration attached to an altar, also called retable. An altarpiece is an image or images, painted or carved in the round or relief, of a titular saint. It is distinguished from a reredos, which contains elaborate carved figures. An altarpiece may hang on the wall behind the altar or above it, and may range from a single picture to a large polyptych, such as the Ghent altarpiece by Hubert and Jan Van Eyck. A large altarpiece with several panels is called an ancona in Italian, while a pala is usually a single picture. Altarpieces may also be made of metal, such as the Pala d'Oro of St. Mark's Venice, which is made of gold, silver, and jewels.