A baldachin (or baldacchino) is a canopy. The most typical use of the term refers to an architectural canopy placed over the high altar of a church. The best known example is Bernini's baldachin for St Peter's in Rome.
Baroque architectural baldachins often have twisted columns and elaborate detail, but the term can apply to a textile canopy supported on poles. This latter type is sometimes depicted in paintings, most often over a Virgin and Child group.