Calefactory

The calefactory (also warming house) was an important room or building in a medieval monastery in Western Europe.

[1] In the present day it is a communal place of recreation and fellowship in religious houses such as monasteries, priories, and convents.

In this period the calefactory had a communal fire kept ablaze so that the monks could warm themselves after long hours of study in the (unheated) cloister or other work.

This policy was generally relaxed, save for a few very strict orders, by the latter part of the medieval period when fireplaces became common throughout the claustral buildings.

In the present day, monasteries, priories, convents and other religious houses often have a calefactory as a place where social gatherings or meetings, councils, or chapters are held.