Lance
Grail
"A maiden came in with the squires, holding between her two hands a grail. She was beautiful, gracious, splendidly garbed, and as she entered with the grail in her hands, there was such a brilliant light that the candles lost their brightness, just as the stars do when the moon or the sun rises." - Chrétien de Troyes, Perceval, the Story of the Grail (c. 1190), trans. Nigel Bryant:
Wolfram — the Grail providing nourishment at the castle:
"Whatever one stretched out one's hand for in the presence of the Grail, it was waiting, one found it all ready and to hand — dishes warm, dishes cold, new-fangled dishes and old favourites… for the Grail was the very fruit of bliss, a cornucopia of the sweets of this world."
This is from Wolfram's Parzival, Book V, describing the feast at Munsalvaesche. (⚑ Confirm exact wording against Hatto or Mustard/Passage translation.)
Jessie Weston's ritual interpretation. Weston argued the Grail Castle preserves a pre-Christian initiation ritual — the candidate enters the sanctuary, witnesses sacred objects (lance, cup, dish, sword), and must demonstrate understanding. The castle is the ritual chamber. This is influential scholarship and worth including.
Peredur / the Welsh version. In the Welsh Peredur son of Efrawg, the castle contains a severed head on a platter instead of the Grail — a bleeding head carried in procession. This is the oldest stratum of the story and connects to Celtic head-cult traditions.