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sanctus |
1 definition found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Sanctus \Sanc"tus\, n. [L. sanctus, p. p. of sancire.] 1. (Eccl.) A part of the Mass, or in Protestant churches, a part of the communion service, of which the first words in Latin are Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus [Holy, holy, holy]; -- called also {Tersanctus}. 2. (Mus.) An anthem composed for these words {Sanctus bell}, a small bell usually suspended in a bell cot at the apex of the nave roof, over the chancel arch, in medi[ae]val churches, but a hand bell is now often used -- so called because rung at the singing of the sanctus, at the conclusion of the ordinary of the Mass, and again at the elevation of the host. Called also {Mass bell}, {sacring bell}, {saints' bell}, {sance-bell}, {sancte bell}.
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