ciborium

noun

ci·bo·ri·um | \sə-ˈbȯr-ē-əm

plural ciboria\ sə-ˈbȯr-ē-ə

\ also ciboriums

Definition of ciborium

1 : a goblet-shaped vessel for holding eucharistic bread

2 : baldachin specifically : a freestanding vaulted canopy supported by four columns over a high altar

History and Etymology for ciborium

Medieval Latin cibōrium "altar canopy," going back to Latin, "drinking cup," borrowed from Greek kibṓrion "seed pod of the water lily Nelumbo nucifera, cup resembling this pod," of obscure origin

Note: Though the water lily Nelumbo nucifera was called the "Egyptian bean" in Greek (Aigýptios kýamos)—unless this was in actuality a different plant—Nelumbo nucifera is native to South and Southeast Asia and it is uncertain if it was ever cultivated in Egypt. It is described as native by Herodotus (Histories 2.92), but he may have confused imported seeds and pods with the indigenous Egyptian water lilies Nymphaea lotus and N. caerulea. According to the Greek lexicographer Hesychius, kibṓrion is an Egyptian name; if he meant that it was borrowed from ancient Egyptian, a source has never been found.