Liturgical Tradition

Liturgical colours, both in the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches, signify the character of the various seasons and feast days, and thus symbolise the religious year. The colours find their use on the vestments worn during the service. Their application is not always governed by a general rule. Often relating to a late-Mediaeval custom, they can vary from region to region. (Detailed text)


Date: Subject to continuous adaptation and change

Bibliography: K. Goldhammer, «Farbe, liturgisch», in Reallexikon zur Deutschen Kunstgeschichte, published by the Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte München, Volume VII, Munich 1981.