Masquerade Mask Types: Bauta, Volto, Colombina, Moretta and More
A masquerade mask is a decorative mask worn to hide or transform the wearer's identity at a ball or carnival, and most of the type names come from the Carnival of Venice. The classic Venetian types are the bauta, volto, moretta, colombina, medico della peste, gatto and jolly, plus the character half masks of the commedia dell'arte. Each name describes a shape — how much of the face it covers and what it does at the mouth — so you can name a mask from a photograph.
The masquerade mask types at a glance
| Type | Also called | How you tell it apart | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bauta | baùtta | Full face, square chin that juts forward past the mouth, no mouth opening | Worn with a black cape and tricorn hat; lets the wearer eat and talk without removing it |
| Volto | larva, citizen mask | Full face, plain and white, follows the face closely, closed mouth | The anonymous "everyman" mask; the base shape for painting and gilding |
| Moretta | servetta muta | Small black oval, no mouth, no ties — held on by a button gripped in the teeth | Historic women's mask; the wearer cannot speak while wearing it |
| Colombina | columbina, half mask, eye mask | Covers only the eyes and upper cheeks; usually gilded, jewelled or feathered | The modern ball mask — by far the most common type sold |
| Medico della peste | plague doctor mask | Full face with a very long curved beak and round eye openings | Carnival character based on the costume attributed to 17th-century plague doctors |
| Gatto | cat mask | Half mask with a cat's features and pointed ears | Carnival character mask |
| Jolly | jester, joker mask | Full or half face with a jester's collar or belled points | Carnival and theatre |
| Commedia masks | Zanni, Pantalone, Arlecchino | Leather half masks with exaggerated noses and brows, mouth free | Theatre: each shape is a stock character |
Modern party masks add a few shapes Venice never used: the feather-crest eye mask, the lace or filigree eye mask, the stick mask held up by a handle, the lower-face veil, and creature half masks such as horned devils. Most of them are variations on the colombina.
Bauta — the one with the jutting chin
The bauta covers the whole face, but its lower edge projects forward below the nose like a beak turned sideways. That gap is the point: the wearer can eat, drink and talk without taking it off. It was traditionally worn with a black cape (the tabarro) and a tricorn hat. What separates it from the volto: the chin. A volto has a closed mouth that follows your face; a bauta stands off it.
Volto — the plain full face
The volto, also called larva (Latin for ghost), is a smooth white full-face mask shaped to the human face, with a closed mouth. Left white, it is the anonymous citizen's mask; painted or gilded, it is the base of most elaborate full-face designs. Because the mouth is closed, you cannot eat or drink in it.
Moretta — the silent one
A small black velvet oval with eye holes and nothing else: no mouth, no ribbon. It stayed on because the wearer held a button inside it between her teeth, so she could not speak while wearing it.
Colombina — the half mask everyone means
The colombina covers the eyes, the bridge of the nose and the upper cheeks, and stops there. Named after Colombina, the maid in commedia dell'arte, it is traditionally gilded, jewelled or feathered, and tied on with ribbon or held up on a stick. When someone says "masquerade mask" today, this is the shape they mean.
Almost everything in our range is a colombina with a crest built on top. The silver cut-out mask with the white plume and the white feather fan with the silver frame are the same half-mask shape with different feather arrangements; the red fan mask and the green fan mask push the feathers out into a full halo.
The black baroque mask is the most traditional-looking of the set: a solid colombina with raised scroll-and-leaf relief, the way gilded Venetian masks are modelled, and a short feather spray.
Medico della peste — the long beak
A full-face mask, usually white or cream, with a very long downward-curving beak and round eyes, sometimes with spectacle rims. It takes its look from the protective costume described for plague doctors in the 17th century. The tell: the beak is long and the mask covers the whole face.
Gatto, jolly and the commedia masks
The gatto is a half mask with a cat's face and ears. The jolly is the jester, often with a pointed collar or bells. The commedia dell'arte masks are leather half masks for stock theatre characters: Zanni with a long nose, Pantalone with a hooked one, Arlecchino with a rounder, catlike face. They leave the mouth free so the actor can speak.
The modern horned masks descend from that character-mask idea rather than any single Venetian type. The red devil half mask covers eyes and nose and stops above the mouth, like a commedia mask; the black ram-horn demon mask is larger and covers the centre of the face.
The modern shapes
Feather-crest mask or headdress with mask? If the feathers are fixed to the mask, it is a colombina with a crest. If they sit on their own band and the mask is a separate piece, it is a headdress worn with a mask — the green feather headpiece with the black lace eye mask is two pieces sold together.
Lace or filigree mask: a colombina cut as openwork, in lace or thin metal.
Stick mask: any mask mounted on a handle and held up rather than tied. It is a way of holding a mask, not a separate shape — usually a colombina.
Lower-face veil: the reverse of a colombina — it covers nose, mouth and chin and leaves the eyes bare. Not Venetian at all. The black and silver chain mask is this shape in beads and chain.
The parts of a mask, and what they are called
| Part | What it is |
|---|---|
| Shell | The rigid moulded body of the mask. Traditionally papier-mâché or leather; party masks are usually moulded plastic. |
| Eye openings | Almond-shaped on most colombinas, round on the medico. Their size decides how much you can see. |
| Crest | Anything built up from the top edge — feathers, a crown, a fan. Adds height and weight. |
| Filigree | Openwork cutout pattern, in lace or thin metal. |
| Ties | Ribbon or elastic that holds the mask on. Ribbon adjusts; elastic is fixed. The moretta has none. |
| Handle | The stick on a stick mask, usually fixed to one side. |
| Gilding | Gold or silver leaf or paint on the surface; the traditional Venetian finish. |
Common confusions
Bauta or volto?
Both are full-face and often white. Look at the chin: the bauta juts forward and leaves room to eat, the volto follows the face and closes over the mouth.
A beaked mask is not always a medico della peste
The medico is a full-face mask with a long, curved beak. A half mask with a short beak is a bird mask. The silver and black eagle mask is the second kind: it stops at the nose, the beak barely passes the lip, and the mouth is free.
Half mask, eye mask, colombina
In everyday use these mean the same shape; "eye mask" usually means a narrower one.
If you are choosing one
We do not sell bauta, volto, moretta or medico masks; our range is colombinas with feather crests, a few creature half masks and a chain veil. For choosing between them — how big, how it stays on, crest or headpiece — see the guides below, or browse the masks collection.
Questions people actually ask
What are the different types of masquerade masks?
The Venetian types are the bauta (full face, jutting chin), volto (plain full face), moretta (small black oval), colombina (half mask over eyes and cheeks), medico della peste (long beak), gatto (cat) and jolly (jester), plus commedia dell'arte half masks. Modern party masks add feather-crest, lace, stick and lower-face veil styles.
What is a Venetian mask called?
There is no single name — each shape has its own. The one most people picture, covering just the eyes and upper cheeks, is a colombina. The full-face white one is a volto; the one with the square jutting chin is a bauta.
What is the difference between a bauta and a volto?
The chin. A bauta's lower edge projects forward so you can eat and talk while wearing it. A volto follows the face and closes over the mouth.
What is the mask with the long beak called?
The medico della peste, or plague doctor mask: full face, long curved beak. A half mask with a short beak is simply a bird mask.
What is a mask on a stick called?
A stick mask or handheld mask. It is a way of holding a mask rather than a separate type, and it is usually a colombina with a handle fixed to one side.
Which masquerade mask lets you eat and drink?
Any half mask, since the mouth is free: colombina, commedia masks, most bird and devil half masks. Among full-face types, only the bauta.
Related guides
- Masquerade Masks: Pick the Scale First, the Colour Second — how big a mask to choose once you know the type
- Masquerade Mask Fit: What Is Actually Holding It On — ties, crests and why a mask slips
- Feather Masquerade Headpieces: Face Piece or Head Piece? — crest on the mask or feathers on a band
- What Our Costume Masks Are Made Of — how these masks are built
- Carnival Feather Headdresses — when the feathers become the main piece