cresset
1
9.9
- noun
- /ˈkrɛsɪt/
- Archaic
- Gudjen took a torch from a cresset in the wall, lighted it in the fire, then went around the room lighting all the torches until shadow upon shadow leapt upon the walls.
- light the cressets
Examples
-
To navigate the dark path, they used a cresset filled with burning oil as a beacon.
-
The inn's servants lit the cresset, providing a warm glow to the evening festivities.
-
And now, I may hold aloft mine own fiery cresset.
-
Fatwood fires were built in these improvised cressets to provide light for evening services.
Academic text (1994) -
When he'd bracketed the torch in a cresset just inside his door, Dail resumed his hunt and found the oil pot behind the chamber pot.
Fiction book (1992) -
Now those remembered words sounded like an accusation as the torch in the wall cresset snapped and orange light leaped high, flinging images of his debris-strewn quarters at him.
Fiction book (1992) -
In the ancient castle, the cressets along the walls flickered, casting dancing shadows everywhere.
Synonyms
2
8.1
A metal container where people burn coal or charcoal to keep warm outdoors
1
8.3
A fire lit on a hill or tower to signal people far away
1
9.9
A light you can carry with a cover that protects a flame or bulb
How Bright
Surface Forms
Etymology
Cresset comes from an old idea of a metal 'cup' or 'basket' that held burning oil or wood to make light. So a cresset is a metal holder of fire used long ago as a torch or beacon to light a path or send a signal.