Mascaron (architecture)

In the 11th century, European stonemasons began adding carved foliate mascarons, known as Green Men, to the decoration of churches, an image that early 20th-century scholars suggested had secretly represented a surviving pre-Christian god. Today, few scholar believe this idea. The Green Man is primarily interpreted as a symbol of rebirth, representing the cycle of new growth that occurs every spring.[4]

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  Early Byzantine mosaic with a foliate head, possibly from the reign of Byzantine emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565), Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Constantinople (present-day Istanbul, Turkey)[5]
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  Elaborate foliate head in the Norwich Cathedral, Norfolk, England, 14th or early 15th-century[6]
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  Renaissance ornamental design with a mascaron, by Sebald Beham, 1543, engraving, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., USA
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  Complex pair of foliate heads above a window of Strada Justiției no. 46, Bucharest, Romania, unknown architect, c.1900

This gallery shows how mascarons changed over time. From being present almost exclusively on antefixes in Etruscan antiquity, to being used very often to decorate keystones during the 17th, 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. They are also representative for their style. For example, Art Nouveau mascarons consist often of faces of young women, showing the preference of many Art Nouveau artists for the femme fatale, and Rococo (including Rococo Revival) mascarons consist of mostly Cupid-like ethereal faces, showing the delicate and aristocrat vibe of the style.

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  Ancient Greek mascaron of a gorgon from the sanctuary of Apollo, Didyma, present-day Turkey, unknown architect, 6th and 3rd centuries BC
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  Etruscan antefix of a female figure, c.520-510 BC, terracotta, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC[7]
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  Etruscan antefix of Medusa, c.510-500 BC, teracotta, National Etruscan Museum, Rome[8]
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  Head of Medusa, 37-41 AD, bronze, Museo Nazionale Romano, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Rome[9]
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  Aztec facade of the Temple of the Feathered Serpent (detail reconstruction), Teotihuacan, Mexico, c.225[10]
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  Renaissance mascaron adorning the front door of the campanile of the Church of Santa Maria Formosa, Venice, Italy, by Mauro Codussi, 1492
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  Baroque mascaron on the pedestal of a clock, by André Charles Boulle, c.1690, gilt wood, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC
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  Rococo mascaron above the door of the Hôtel de Chenizot (Rue Saint-Louis-en-l'Île no. 51-53), Paris, by Pierre Vigné de Vigny, 1719
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  Rococo mascaron in the courtyard of the Hôtel Le Lièvre de la Grange (Rue de Braque no. 4-6), Paris, by Victor-Thierry Dailly, 1734-1735
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  Chinoiserie mascaron above a window of the Chinese Pavilion, Ekerö Municipality, Sweden, by Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz, 1763–1769[11]
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  Neoclassical mascaron, most probably from a piece of furniture, late 18th–early 19th century, gilt bronze, Metropolitan Museum of Art
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  Egyptian Revival mascaron with the face of goddess Hathor on the facade of the Foire du Caire building (Place du Caire no. 2), Paris, unknown architect, 1828
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  Neoclassical mascaron in a mosaic on a ceiling of the Palais Garnier, Paris, by Charles Garnier, 1860–1875[12]
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  Beaux Arts mascaron on the Pont Alexandre III, Paris, by Joseph Cassien-Bernard and Gaston Cousin, 1896-1900
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  The three Secessionist gorgons on the Secession Building, Vienna, Austria, by Joseph Maria Olbrich, 1897-1898[13]
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  Romanian Revival windows with mascarons at the top, on the facade of Strada Polonă no. 13, Bucharest, Romania, unknown architect, c.1900
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  Cantacuzino Palace (Calea Victoriei no. 141), Bucharest, by Ion D. Berindey, 1898-1906[14]
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  Giant Art Nouveau mascaron on a pavilion erected in the court of the Cotroceni Palace, Bucharest, unknown architect, 1901
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  Rococo Revival mascaron surrounded by shells and round shapes (aka volutes), on the facade of Strada General H. M. Berthelot no. 41, Bucharest, unknown architect, 1911[15]
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  Art Deco mascaron of a wall lantern of the Mihai Zisman House (Calea Călărașilor no. 44), Bucharest, by architect Soru, 1920
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  Art Deco mascaron above the door of Rue Mademoiselle no. 40, Paris, unknown architect, c.1930
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  Mediterranean Revival window of the Prof. C.A. Teodorescu House (Bulevardul Eroii Sanitari no. 89), Bucharest, Ion Giurgea, 1941[16]

• Chimera (architecture)
• Gargoyle
• Green Man
• Mask

• Jones, Denna, ed. (2014). Architecture The Whole Story. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-29148-1.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mascarons.

• Art of Old Paris