The majestical masks of Venice's carnival

How the famed dress of the carnevale survived dread and censorship throughout the centuries

Between February 7 and 24, Venice hosts one of Europe's biggest and most glamorous carnivals. During the 10 days before Ash Wednesday, the city comes alive with parties and masked balls in the many mansions and palaces.
In Venice, Carnival first gained widespread popularity in the 18th century. The Venetian tradition of wearing masks and costumes was reportedly started by the "stocking companies" - clubs of young Venetian noblemen intent on amusing their fellow Venetians by organizing parties and spectacles. The gentlemen were famous for the colourful stockings they wore.
Today, the Carnival in Venice lasts two weeks. The nights beckon with masked balls and sumptuous parties, and costumed revellers crowd the narrow streets, bridges and squares, while the sounds of trumpets, firecrackers, drums and shouts fill the air. Street musicians, flame and sword-swallowers, jugglers, mimes and magicians entertain passers-by on every corner.
But no matter how much fun is had, it all ends at midnight on Shrove Tuesday, when an effigy of Carnival is burned to signal the end of the festival. Everyone parades to the Piazza San Marco in their masks to see the "Concert of Ashes," which is followed by an Ash Wednesday Mass to mark the beginning of Lent.
The masked partygoers are what make the Venice Carnival one of the most romantic and traditional of Europe's big festivals. The tradition behind the Venice carnival is one of the many things that gives Venice its romantic aura. But wearing masks during these celebrations wasn't always tolerated by La Serenissima's lawmakers.
The oldest document pertaining to the use of masks in Venice dates back to 2nd May 1268. In the document it is written that it was forbidden for masqueraders to practice the game of the "eggs". From the early 14th century onwards, new laws started to be promulgated, with the aim of stopping the relentless moral decline of the Venetian people of the day. This restrictive carnival legislation started with a decree on February 22 1339 prohibiting masqueraders from going around the city at night. A decree that helps us understand just how libertine the Venetians of the day were, is that of January 24 1458 which forbade men from entering convents dressed as women to commit "multas inhonestates"! In a similar vein, the decree of February 3 1603 is interesting in that it attempted to restore morality in the convents.
Masqueraders were banned from entering the nuns' parlours - it had been the convention to sit in the parlours and talk to the nuns. Frequently, decrees were promulgated prohibiting masqueraders from carrying arms or any instrument which could cause harm, or other decrees which forbade masqueraders from entering churches.
This obligation was extended to the townsfolk who were not allowed to enter churches wearing "indecent attire". The year 1608 was an important one, the 13th of August to be precise, when a decree from the council of 10 was issued declaring that the wearing of the mask throughout the year posed a serious threat to the Republic. To avoid the terrible consequences of this immoral behaviour, every citizen, nobleman and foreigner alike, was obliged to only wear a mask during the days of carnival and at official banquets.
The penalties inflicted for breaking this law were heavy - for a man this meant two years in jail, 18 months' service to the Republic galley-rowing (with ankles fettered) and a 500 lire fine to the Council of 10. As for women, they were whipped from St. Mark's Square all the way to Rialto, then held to public ridicule between the two columns in St Mark's. They were banned from entering the territory of the Venetian Republic for four years and had to pay the 500 lire fine to the Council of 10.
Exactly 50 years after the decree of 1608, the Council of 10 published a proclamation on the 15th January reaffirming the ban on wearing masks and bearing arms.
It was further prohibited to enter holy places wearing a mask and it was expressly forbidden to wear religious clothes with a mask. In the same decree the use of drums was banned before midday, and even dancing of any description was prohibited outside of the carnival period. Seeing that many Venetian nobles used to go gambling wearing a mask to avoid their creditors, in 1703, masks were banned all year round from casinos.
Two different decrees (1699 and 1718) saw the prohibition of wearing a mask during Lent and other religious festivals which took place during carnival. In 1776, an act was introduced to protect the by now forgotten "family honour", which forbade all women from going to the theatre without a mask and cloak. After the fall of the Republic, the Austrian government forbade the use of masks for both private parties and elite parties (e.g., la Cavalchina della Fenice).
The Italo-Austrian government was more open but now it was the Venetians who were being diffident. Venice was no longer the city of carnival, but just a little imperial province without personal freedoms. During the second Austrian government it was once again permitted to wear masks.

Publication Date: 2004-02-22
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=3657