[se-dahy-lee] 
[-dil-ee-uh] . Ecclesiastical. | one of the seats (usually three) on the south side of the chancel, often recessed, for the use of the officiating clergy. |
| se·di·le (sĭ-dī'lē) n. pl. se·di·lia (-dĭl'yə, -dĭl'ē-ə) One of a set of seats, usually three, provided in some Roman Catholic and Anglican churches for the use of the presiding clergy, traditionally placed on the epistle side of the choir near the altar, and in Gothic-style churches often built into the wall. [Latin sedīle, seat, from sedēre, to sit; see sed- in Indo-European roots.] |
sedilia
in architecture, group of seats for the clergy in a Christian church of Gothic style. Usually consisting of three separate stone seats-for the priest, the deacon, and the subdeacon-the sedilia is located on the south side of the chancel, or choir, in a cruciform church (one that is built in the shape of a cross). The earliest sedilia were freestanding stone benches, but late in the 12th century church architects began to recess the sedilia into the chancel wall. Often these recessed seats are on three different levels, descending like steps from east to west. The niches they occupy are frequently decorated with rich canopies, elegantly carved arches, and pinnacles.
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