THURIFER (Lat. thur, incense, and fer., to carry), the ministering attendant in the Roman Catholic church, at solemn mass, vespers, and other solemn ceremonies, whose duty it is to carry the thurible, or incense vessel, and either to minister incense (q.v.) himself, or to present the thurible to be used for that purpose by the officiating priest. The office of thurifer is one of those which belong to the so-called " Minor Order" of acolyte. See ORDERS. The thurible now in use, consists of a metallic vessel for holding burning charcoal, commonly of sil. Ter or silver-plated, but occasionally also of gold, with a movable cap, and suspended from four chains, so as to be capable of being freely waved about in the air for the readier dispersion of the smoke of the incense, which is thrown upon the live char coal.
(Forest of Thuringia) is a considerable mountain-range of cen tral Germany, which extends from the junction of the rivers Werra and Horsel, near Yiscnach (q.v.), in a s.e. direction to the n. of Bavaria, where it joins the Franken
wald a ramification of the Fichtel-Gelbirge. Its total length is about 50 m., and its highest sumits (Gross-Beerberg, Schneekopf, Inse]sberg, and Finsterberg) range from a height of close on 3,000 ft. to about 3,200 feet. The range is composed mostly of gran ite, porphyry, and argillaceous schists, abounding in metallic veins, among which iron ore is most conspicuous, though many others are found more or less plentiful; and auriferous sands occur in some of the rivers which have their source here. The Thuringer-wald is parceled out among the states of Weimar, Meiningen, Coburg-Gotha, Prussia, Schwarzburg, Reuss, and Altenburg.