Parclose screen

Where a solid masonry wall is used instead of a screen, a hagioscope or squint is required to serve the same purpose.

Parclose screens are made of stone or wood and are often decoratively carved, frequently featuring the coats of arms of the family concerned.

The word derives from the French noun parclose[2] (f), from the Latin verb claudo, "to close" plus the preposition per, "through, along, over".

[3] In England, the use of parclose screens was largely discontinued in the 16th century after the Reformation, and after the Dissolution of the Monasteries when chantries were dissolved.

Many fine examples of mediaeval parclose screens survive in the parish churches and cathedrals of England.