ALTAR (Lat. altar(' or altar, probably origi nally a high place, from altus, high). The place on which sacrifices were made or offerings laid or libations poured or some other act of worship performed. Altars were in use from the earlie-st, times among the Babylonians, the Egyptians, and later peoples. Some of those mentioned in the Old Testament are among the earliest of which descriptions are recorded. The British Museum has several Assyrian marble altars highly deco rated ; one triangular, another oblong. with scrolls that call to mind the expression "horns of the altar," which is literally carried out in many Grmeo-Roman altars with ox-horns or ram-horns at the corners. The altar was primitively of two classes: Either (1) placed on some height and often nothing but a mound of earth or a heap of stones or of ashes; or else (2) the famiry altar connected with each dwelling, in front of the entrance. This was smaller, permanent, and more artistic. Then came the altars connected with temples, either in the outer air, in front of the temple steps, or within. The great public altars of Grmco-Roman worship in historic times, at which whole hecatombs were sacrificed, and great festivals held, developed into immense ar tistic monuments. as for example that of Tiler° at Syracuse. that of Ilera at Samos, of .Apollo at Delphi, and of Zeus at Olympia; the last named Wfl,; 125 feet in circumference. The famous altar at Pergamus, with sculptures representing the combat. of the gods and the giants, was 40 feet high. Prpbably such altars and their platforms are derived from the early Pelasgic altars that stood on an immense three stepped platform, and were the one centre of worship; for the Pelasgians had few temples. The Romans also used such colossal and artistic altars, especially to consecrate imperial wor ship: there was one for Spain and one for Gaul (at Lyons), with au abundance of statuary and decoration, where the Spanish and Gallic councils met annually and proclaimed their political alle giance. The Altar of Peace, with its sculptured friezes, erected in honor of Augustus, at Rome. to celebrate the pacification of the world, was one of the artistic masterpieces of the Augustan reign. Of the smaller altars and tables of offer ings, hundreds were erected in every city, not only in connection with the temples, but also in shrines and chapels and throughout the streets: they are among the finest pieces of Gra.co-Roman decoration, and are of all shapes—circular, poly gonal. square or oblong. Usually each was con secrated to a single god or hero. Of course, the
use to which the altar was put influenced its form: according as it was for incense or sacred fire, for libations. for fruits, flowers, or the like, or for bloody sacrifices.
In the Christian Church the altar was quite different in its suggestions. All reminiscence of heathen altars was abhorrent. The marble sarcophagi in which were buried the bodies of martyrs in the catacombs were among the earli est altars, except, indeed, plain wooden tables which developed into marble slabs with one or more legs. Only a single altar was allowed in each church—none outside—and it was always erected over the relics of a martyr. As early as the fifth century, precious metals came into use for altars. The great variety of shape in pagan times was reduced to one—moderately ob long. The altar was placed in the axis of the church, just outside the radius of the apse, or in the middle of the transept, if there was one. Beneath it was the confession (see CONFESSION ) for the relics of the saint, which afterward de veloped into the crypt. I See CaYm) Above it rose a tabernacle, canopy, or ciborium. (See The structure of the altar itself was rarely ornamented, though in Italy the faces were often inlaid with marbles and mosaics. Neverthe less the altar usually had a numher of ar tistic accessories that must he mentioned to give an idea of its appearance. Altar-front was a deco ration for the front and sometimes for the other sides of the altar, not merely when the structure was a slab supported on legs, but even if it were solid. It was sometimes in the shape of a rich hanging: sometimes it was a relief of gold, silver gilt, enamel, or silver. Famous altar are at the Clugny Museum (from Basel). Paris; at St. Mark's, Venice; at Sant' Ambrogio, 'Milan; at San Jacopo. Pistoia. used as a decoration placed on top of the altar. a custom that did not come into use until the .Middle Ages, when the altar was made to face the people and not the apse. and when altars against the wall were multiplied. Some altar pieces, complements to the altar-fronts, were of precious metals, as at Venice (St. Mark's), and at Pistoia (San Jaeopo), but usually they were devotional pictures, preferably in the form of triptychs, or even groups of sculpture. or a scalp bared tabernacle. .4 Itar-Rrrern is often coma-Med with the confession and its staircase. In early churches it was surmounted by sculpture, and hardly distiwruishable from an altar-rail. Con sult Rohault de Fleury. La Illesse (Paris, 1883).