The masquerade mask of Venice is the cultural symbol of the city. Travelers now flood the piazzas and canals of Venice searching for the mystical culture that once filled the air. These expressive and decorative masks are part of an entire festival that holds strong historic ground. The story of Venetian masks dates back to the 13th century.

The citizens of Venice developed a unique culture—one in which the concealing of the identity in daily life became extremely important to daily activity. A mask served as a device for hiding the wearers identity and social status. Part of the secrecy was pragmatic there were things to do， people to see， and perhaps you might not want others to know what deals you were cutting. After all， the city was relatively small.

Additionally， the masks served an important social purpose of keeping every citizen on an equal playing field. Masked， a servant could be mistaken for a nobleman—or vice versa. State inquisitors and spies could question citizens without fear of their true identity being discovered（and citizens could answer without fear of punishment）. The dignity of the people was maintained through the use of masks—for with no faces， everyone had voices.

However， the city fell into a state of luxury， indolence， and moral decay. As a result， the wearing of masks in daily life was banned and limited only to certain months of the year. Eventually， Venetian masks re-emerged as the symbol of Venetian Carnival—a gathering of masked people in the 15th century. The Venice Carnival is the most internationally known festival celebrated in Venice， as well as being one of the oldest.

The streets of Venice Carnival were full of people in masks， and no difference could be made between nobility and the common people. Generally， the costume worn was a cloak with a long-nosed mask. Also popular were masked couples， where a man and a woman would dress as allegorical characters.

In the squares street-artists and singers entertain with songs and music from their guitars， the guests of the Venice Carnival.

Although Venetian Carnival lost popularity as Venices cultural production faltered during the Enlightenment， it was officially reintroduced in 1979.

The modern celebration of Venetian Carnival has reinvigorated the art and craft of making Venetian masks. These masks continue to dazzle tourists， dancers， and pageant participants during Carnival and year round.

Originally mask-makers used two different methods. Papier mache was the first method which combined glue and paper strips to form the shape of the mask. These masks were generally designed to be held by a stick and to only cover the eyes. In order to create full-face masks， the artists used clay to produce moulds.

The original masks were symbolic and simple. Over time， masquerade masks became more and more complex. Venetian masks are characterised by their ornate design， featuring bright colours such as gold or silver and the use of complex decorations in the baroque style.

Colour was a significant part of the design. Bright blues， reds， yellows， oranges and greens were the most common choices. Generally， males would wear darker colours while women would wear lighter ones. Customised masks were also possible， resulting in a vast array of unique masquerade masks.

Venetian mask-makers use a variety of materials and techniques for decoration of their glorious masks. Acrylic paints， gold and silver leaf， macramé lace， beads， glitter， precious fabrics， feathers， tarot cards， metal ornaments， Swarovski crystal pieces， semiprecious jewels， leather and more.

Since the late 20th century， masquerade masks have become part of the artistic and craft-making culture of Italy as well as other countries. The masquerade mask is not only a historic and traditional part of culture， but it is also a tourist attraction in modern times.

威尼斯假面舞會(huì)的面具是這座城市的文化象征。游客們潮水般涌入威尼斯的各個(gè)露天廣場(chǎng)和水道，尋找曾經(jīng)彌漫在空氣中的神秘文化。這些富有表現(xiàn)力又極具裝飾性的面具是這里歷史聞名的慶祝活動(dòng)的一部分。威尼斯面具的故事可以追溯到13世紀(jì)。

威尼斯的居民們締造了一種獨(dú)特的文化——在日常生活和活動(dòng)中隱藏自己的身份尤為重要，而面具起到了隱藏佩戴者身份和社會(huì)地位的作用。這種神神秘秘的舉動(dòng)，其實(shí)部分是出于實(shí)際考慮：你想做某些事情或見某些人，但是你可能并不想讓別人知道你在做什么交易。畢竟，這個(gè)城市相對(duì)還是較小的。

此外，面具還起到了重要的社會(huì)作用：實(shí)現(xiàn)人人平等。戴上面具之后，仆人可以被誤認(rèn)為是貴族，反之亦然。國(guó)家的審訊官或間諜可以向居民提問，而無需擔(dān)心暴露自己的真正身份（且居民在回答提問時(shí)也不必?fù)?dān)心受到責(zé)罰）。人們的尊嚴(yán)由于使用面具而得到了維護(hù)——因?yàn)榭床坏侥槪[藏了真實(shí)身份），大家也就敢暢所欲言了。

然而，這座城市陷入了驕奢淫逸、好逸惡勞和道德敗壞的境地。因此，除了在一年中某些特定的月份之內(nèi)，人們?cè)谌粘Ｉ钪斜唤古宕髅婢?。最終，威尼斯面具成為了威尼斯嘉年華的標(biāo)志，再次進(jìn)入人們的視線。威尼斯嘉年華始于15世紀(jì)，參加者均佩戴面具。如今，這一節(jié)日已成為這座城市舉辦的世界最知名的盛事，也是歷史最悠久的嘉年華之一。

威尼斯嘉年華舉辦之時(shí)，街道上滿是戴面具的人，沒人能分辨出貴族與平民。通常，人們?cè)诩文耆A上穿的服裝是一件斗篷，配上一個(gè)長(zhǎng)鼻子面具。戴著面具的夫妻或是情侶們裝扮成寓言中的人物，這在嘉年華上也非常普遍。

在廣場(chǎng)上，街頭藝術(shù)家和流浪歌手們用歌聲和吉他的樂聲娛樂前來參加嘉年華的客人們。

在啟蒙運(yùn)動(dòng)期間，威尼斯的文化創(chuàng)作停滯不前，威尼斯嘉年華也風(fēng)光不再，然而到了1979年，嘉年華又正式得以恢復(fù)。

現(xiàn)代威尼斯嘉年華的慶祝活動(dòng)使得面具藝術(shù)和制作工藝重新煥發(fā)了青春。在嘉年華期間，抑或平時(shí)，這些面具都能讓游客、舞者和盛裝游行的人們?yōu)橹畠A倒。

最初，面具工匠們采用兩種不同的制作方法。第一種方法是用混凝紙漿，這種方法用膠水和紙板制作出面具的形狀。這樣制作出來的面具通常都要由一根手柄來支撐，而且只能遮住眼睛。為了制作出遮住整個(gè)臉部的面具，面具藝術(shù)家們開始使用黏土來做鑄模。

最初的面具是具有象征意義的，樣式也很簡(jiǎn)單。隨著時(shí)間的推移，假面舞會(huì)上的面具變得越來越復(fù)雜。威尼斯面具以其華美的設(shè)計(jì)見長(zhǎng)，充分運(yùn)用了金、銀等鮮艷的色彩和巴洛克式的復(fù)雜裝飾。

顏色是面具設(shè)計(jì)中相當(dāng)重要的一部分。明艷的藍(lán)色、紅色、黃色、橙色和綠色是最常見的選擇。通常，男人會(huì)佩戴顏色較深的面具，而女人則佩戴顏色較淺的面具。也可以按照個(gè)人的需求定制面具，于是就有了很多獨(dú)一無二的假面面具。

威尼斯的面具工匠們?cè)谘b飾他們?nèi)A美的面具時(shí)使用了多種材料和工藝，其中包括丙烯酸顏料、金葉（比金箔?。?、銀葉、流蘇花邊、有孔小珠、亮片、考究的織物、羽毛、塔羅牌、金屬飾品、施華洛世奇水晶物件、次等珠寶以及皮革等等。

自20世紀(jì)末以來，假面舞會(huì)的面具已經(jīng)成為意大利乃至世界其他國(guó)家工藝制作文化的一部分。假面舞會(huì)的面具不僅僅是歷史文化和傳統(tǒng)文化的一部分，如今對(duì)游客也具有極大的吸引力。