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A visard (also spelled vizard) is an oval
A visard recovered from inside the wall of a 16th-century building in
In
Details of a visard
in the collection of the
A miniature visard made for a 17th-century child's doll
in the collection of the
A visard (also spelled vizard) is an oval mask
A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and pra ...
of black velvet
Weave details visible on a purple-colored velvet fabric
Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short pile, giving it a distinctive soft feel. By extension, the word ''velvety'' means ...
, worn by travelling women in the 16th century to protect their skin from sunburn
Sunburn is a form of radiation burn that affects living tissue, such as skin, that results from an overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, usually from the Sun. Common symptoms in humans and animals include: red or reddish skin that is h ...
. The fashion of the period for wealthy women was to keep their skin pale, because a tan suggested that the bearer worked outside and was hence poor. Some types of vizard were not held in place by a fastening or ribbon ties, and instead the wearer clasped a bead attached to the interior of the mask between their teeth.
The practice did not meet universal approval, as evidenced in this excerpt from a contemporary polemic:
A visard recovered from inside the wall of a 16th-century building in
Daventry
Daventry ( , historically ) is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority in Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2021 Census Daventry had a population of 28,123, making ...
, England.
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...
, the visard developed into a design without a mouth hole, the ''moretta
Moretta is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin and about north of Cuneo. As of 1-1-2017, it had a population of 4 141 and an area of .All demographics and other st ...
'', and was gripped with a button between the teeth rather than a bead. The mask's prevention of speech was deliberate, intended to heighten the mystery of a masked woman even further.
A Spanish observer at the wedding of Mary I of England and Philip II of Spain
Mary I of England (1516-1558) and Philip II of Spain (1527-1598) married at Winchester Cathedral on Wednesday 25 July 1554.
Surrey and Hampshire
The English Parliament made provision for the marriage by the Act for the Marriage of Queen Mary ...
in 1554 mentioned that women in London wore masks, ''antifaces'', or veil
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has been prominent ...
s when walking outside. In Scotland in the 1590s Anne of Denmark
Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...
wore masks when horse riding. These were faced with black satin, lined with taffeta, and supplied with Florentine ribbon for fastening and for decoration. At the Union of Crowns
The Union of the Crowns ( gd, Aonadh nan Crùintean; sco, Union o the Crouns) was the accession of James VI of Scotland to the throne of the Kingdom of England as James I and the practical unification of some functions (such as overseas dip ...
in 1603, she travelled to England in June, and it was said she had done "some wrong" to her complexion "for in all this journey she hath worn no mask". In 1620 the lawyer and courtier John Coke sent clothes and costume from London to his wife at Much Marcle, including a satin mask and two green masks for their children.''HMC 12th report part I, Earl Cowper, Coke'' (London, 1888), p. 108.
Citations
See also
*1550–1600 in Western European fashion
Fashion in the period 1550–1600 in Western European clothing was characterized by increased opulence. Contrasting fabrics, slashes, embroidery, applied trims, and other forms of surface ornamentation remained prominent. The wide silhouette, co ...
References
* * * *External links
Details of a visard
in the collection of the
Norwich Castle Museum
Norwich Castle is a medieval royal fortification in the city of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk. William the Conqueror (1066–1087) ordered its construction in the aftermath of the Norman conquest of England. The castle was used as a ...
A miniature visard made for a 17th-century child's doll
in the collection of the
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
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16th-century fashion
16th century in Europe
17th-century fashion
17th century in Europe
History of clothing (Western fashion)
Masks
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