Retable

A retable is a structure or element placed either on or immediately behind and above the altar or communion table[1] of a church.

At the minimum, it may be a simple shelf for candles behind an altar, but it can also be a large and elaborate structure.

The Medieval Latin retrotabulum (modernized retabulum) was applied to an architectural feature set up at the back of an altar, and generally taking the form of a screen framing a picture, carved or sculptured work in wood or stone, or mosaic, or of a movable feature such as the Pala d'Oro in St Mark's Basilica, Venice, of gold, jewels and enamels.

The cognate Spanish term, retablo, refers also to a reredos or retrotabulum, although in the specific context of Mexican folk art, it may refer to any two-dimensional depiction (usually a framed painting) of a saint or other Christian religious figure, as contrasted with a bulto, a three-dimensional statue of same.

The retable may hold the altar cross, mostly in Protestant churches, as well as candles, flowers and other things.