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Four zanni masks (thumbs)
[Griffiths, Appendix (pp. 101-104)] describes the making of a mask, with illustrations.
He has excellent drawings, of the sort that can be used for models, of the Dottore mask
[p. 11], Pantalone mask [p. 12], Arlecchino (Harlequin) mask [p. 13], Pulchinella mask
[p. 14], Capitano mask [p. 15], Isabella masks [p. 16], Punch and Judy masks plus two more
for the characters of his play Please Be Gentle. In addition, there is a drawing
showing the making of a slapstick [Griffiths, p. 36].
[Grantham, pp.261 and 263] shows how to make cardboard and papier mâché masks, less
elaborate than the
mask-making instructions in [Griffiths]. He observes that, traditionally, the bigger the
nose of a zanni mask, the more stupid the character [Grantham, p. 245].
For authenticity, the best source is [Rudlin, Appendix: Making a leather mask]
where detailed instructions are given for mask-making, accompanied by
black-and-white photos of historical Commedia dell'Arte masks from the Musée de
l'Opéra, Paris.
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Tristano Martinelli's mask
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Click on mask to enlarge it.
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Harlequin masks
[Grantham, p. 148] shows an diagram of an Arlecchino
mask taken from Beaumont's History of Harlequin. There are a very wide
mustache below the nose which continues up the sides of the face to join the very
thick eyebrows. There is the traditional mole on the upper right forehead.
While the openings for the eyes are very small, the lower face and mouth of the
actor are uncovered, except for the strap-on chin-piece for the beard. --
This mask looks very much like the Harlequin mask and its matrix shown in [Rudlin,
pp. 38, 44 and 254].
T. Martinelli's mask
Given the great care that Rudlin takes in documenting historical
masks, it is curious that he then states that 'Martinelli is thought to have
played ... without a mask, in blackface with red and white squiggles [Rudlin,
p. 77].
On the other hand, [Grantham, p. 183] says that T. M's. mask was "grotesque...
with deep furrows, a flat nose and pinhole eyes, ... bordered with dark hair
and with full eyebrows."
Looking at the woodcuts from Martinelli's own Compositions de
rhétorique [Arlequin], I see a leather mask formed on a matrix as in
[Rudlin, p. 254], with what may pass for a bump in its forehead (that famous
mole), bristles for whiskers along the bottom edge of the mask, just below
the player's nose, and more bristles that jut out from what may be a strap-on
chin-piece for a narrow beard. The eye-holes are larger than in the photographs
of historical Harlequin masks, leaving the player's field of vision relatively
unobstructed.
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Zany Corneto's mask
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Except for the broad fleshy nose, Zany Corneto's mask
resembles that of Pantalone, as both are shown in the Recueil Fossard.
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Click on mask to enlarge it.
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Mask of an Italian zanni
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This mask resembles closely that of the 'Grande Zanni' mask by
Antonio Fava [Rudlin, p.69] -- it has more of a beak than a nose.
Rudlin points out [Rudlin, chapter on
zanni, pp.67-76] that 'zanni' is the Venetian
diminutive of Giovanni (very common name) and the zanni character is of low
status in the Commedia pecking order, which of course makes him an important
element in the interplay of Commedia action.
This mask evokes
Venice, historically a great center of mask-making, and
Carnival.
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Click on mask to enlarge it.
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Imaginary decorative mask on Italian hurdy-gurdy
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Not a real mask, this is a little sun-in-the-clouds
decoration on the Italian zanni's hurdy-gurdy. The nose is bulbous, like that of the
Dottore mask in [Griffiths, p.11] and in [Rudlin, p.101]. The opening for the
mouth is too small; and a good Commedia mask would leave the whole mouth and chin
uncovered. It does have the Harlequin mole on its forehead.
The decoration is also found in the eye and folds of the Mediterranean sea serpent.
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Click on mask to enlarge it.
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