burse
/bəːs
/noun
1A flat, square, fabric-covered case in which a folded corporal cloth is carried to and from an altar in church.In Roman form the burse is ordinarily made of two juxtaposed pieces of cardboard about twenty-five centimetres (or ten inches) square, bound together at three edges, leaving the fourth open to receive the corporal....
- He or she may make use of a lavabo in preparation for the celebration, and the chalice and paten may be initially concealed by a burse and ornamental veil.
- Upon these burses much ornamentation is lavished, and this has been the case since medieval times, as many existing examples survive to show.
2 (the Burse) historical The Royal Exchange in Cornhill, London. Compare with bourse.
Origin
Late Middle English (in sense 'purse'): from French bourse or medieval Latin bursa (see bourse, bursa).