words

reredos
n. - A piece of wooden panelling attached to a wall either behind a seat to serve as its back or over a fireplace as an ornament. Obs. (hist. in later use)--The back or rear of an army. Obs.--A piece of armour for the back; a backplate. Obs.--The brick or stone backing of a fireplace or open hearth; a metal plate forming a fireback--An ornamental facing or screen of stone or wood covering the wall at the back of an altar-- = ROOD SCREEN--A velvet or silk hanging covering the wall behind an altar. Cf. dorse n.1 1, doss n.1, dosser n.1 1. Obs.

rood screen
n. - A substantial screen, typically of elaborately carved wood or stone and surmounted by a rood or rood loft, separating the nave of a church from the chancel.
Rood screens are found throughout western Europe, and date mainly from the 14th to 16th centuries. In Britain many were destroyed during the Reformation.

rood
n. - A cross, as an instrument of execution; A crucifix, esp. one positioned above the middle of a rood screen of a church or on a beam over the entrance to the chancel; (also) a figure of the cross in wood or metal, as a religious object