Relic vs. Relict

Going through some 1600s wills, I suddenly realize there is a distinction I had never particularly focused on.  Mary Hill married Thomas Morehouse who then died in 1698.

She was his relict and is so referred to in later documents.  It sounds insulting.  In considering that, it occurs to me:  what is the distinction between a relic and a relict?

Asked and answered.

Relic is that which remains; that which is left after loss or decay; a remaining portion

Relict is (formal) something that, or someone who, survives or remains or is left over after the loss of others.

Which is why a widow is a relict and not an insulting relic.