thumb|A cardinal's hat worn by [[St Jerome, depicted by Rubens]]

A (plural: ; from , originally connoting a helmet made of skins; cf. galea) is a broad-brimmed hat with tasselated strings which was worn by clergy in the Catholic Church. Over the centuries, the red galero was restricted to use by individual cardinals while such other colors as black, green and violet were reserved to clergy of other ranks and styles.

Description

thumb|Pius XII placing the galero upon the head of a cardinal at a consistory.

When creating a cardinal, the pope used to place a scarlet galero on the new cardinal's head during the papal consistories, the practice giving rise to the phrase "receiving the red hat." In 1969, Pope Paul VI issued a decree ending the use of the galero. Since that time, only the scarlet zucchetto and biretta are placed over the heads of cardinals during the papal consistory. Some cardinals continue to obtain a galero privately so that the custom of suspending it over their tombs may be observed. Raymond Cardinal Burke has been known to publicly wear the galero on occasion in the 21st century.

A few cardinals from Eastern Catholic sui iuris Churches don their distinctive headdresses particular to the Churches. Other ecclesiastical hats are used by ministers of other Christian communities. Alongside Catholic clergy, the Scots Public Register records its use by Episcopal and Presbyterian ministers. The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland uses a black hat, with blue cords and ten tassels.

thumb|The galero of the late [[Owen McCann|Cardinal Owen McCann hangs from the roof of St. Mary's Cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa.]]

Traditionally, the galero hangs over a cardinal's tomb until it is reduced to dust, symbolizing how all earthly glory is passing. In a cathedral that has no crypt, the galeri are suspended from the ceiling. For example, following the death of Basil Cardinal Hume, Archbishop of Westminster, in 1999, his relatives had a galero installed above his tomb in Westminster Cathedral, alongside those of his predecessors.

History

The privilege of wearing the red galero was first granted to cardinals by Pope Innocent IV in 1245 at the First Council of Lyon. Tradition in the Archdiocese of Lyon is that the red color was inspired by the red hats of the canons of Lyon. Pope Innocent wanted his favorites to be distinct and recognizable in the lengthy processions at the council.

Anachronistically, some early Church Fathers are shown wearing a galero, notably Saint Jerome frequently is pictured in art either wearing a galero, or with one close by.

Ecclesiastical heraldry

thumb|Archbishop [[Giovanni Colombo wearing a galero with ten green tassels on each side (c. 1965)]]

The galero continues to appear today in ecclesiastical heraldry as part of the achievement of the coat of arms of an armigerous Catholic cleric. The galero was originally a wide-brimmed pilgrim's hat, like a sombrero. The ecclesiastical hat replaced the helmet and crest, because those were considered too belligerent for men in the clerical estate.

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Coat of arms of Lorenzo Antonetti.svg|Coat of arms of Lorenzo Cardinal Antonetti, with red galero

Bishop of Colonna family arms.svg| Bishop of Colonna family arms with green galero

Coat of arms of João de Brito.svg| Coat of arms of St. John de Britto with black galero

Coat of arms of Paulinus Greenwood.svg|Coat of arms of Paulinus Greenwood, Abbot of St Augustine's Abbey with black galero

Tonglogo.jpg|Chinese bishops occasionally avoid having a green galero in their arms, as "wearing a green hat" is a Chinese idiom for "cuckold"; for some years as an auxiliary bishop of Hong Kong, Bishop John Tong Hon used a violet galero with violet tassels (which is actually the galero proper to an Honorary Prelate of His Holiness). However, he resumed the use of the green galero on his coat of arms when he became the bishop of Hong Kong until he was created cardinal in 2012.

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See also

  • List of hat styles

Further reading

References

  • Pictures of clerical headgear, information and literature in German language
  • Picture of a cardinal's galero, hanging