Whence the Miter?

Q: I am looking for information on the bishop's miter. Can you help me?

A: Signs and Symbols in Christian Art, by George Ferguson (Oxford University Press), describes the miter as "a tall headdress worn by cardinals, archbishops, bishops and some abbots. It is a liturgical hat and has a plain and simple form, as well as a more ornate and precious form with emand stones." The Dictionary of the Liturgy, by Jovian Lang, O.F.M. (Catholic Book Publishing Co.), describes the miter this way: "The front and back are stiff, shaped like inverted shields ending in a peak which are pressed apart when the miter is on the head. These two pieces are sewn together at the lower part, but a cleft separates them on the top....Two wide lappets hang down from the back over the shoulders."

The miter is a sign of authority. When worn at Mass, it is taken off for the eucharistic prayer. The "horns" of the miter are reminders of the rays of light that came from the head of Moses when he received the Ten Commandments and are also symbolic of the Old and New Testaments. According to Lang, the use of the miter originated in Rome in the 11th century.