in the writers of the middle ages, denotes a catafalco, or a lofty tomb of state, erected in honour of some person of eminence, usually in the church where the body is interred, and decorated with arms, emblems, lights, and the like.

Ecclesiastical writers speak of the ceremony of consecrating a castrum doloris. The edifice was to be constructed so as to represent the body of the deceased; and the priest and deacon were to take their posts, and say prayers in the same manner as if the corpse were actually present.