The Venetian shawl has disappearedIn 1921 when the artist É.M. Baroni writes with passion and emotion, a booklet praising the Venetian shawl, this beautiful adornment characteristic of Venetian women's clothing, it is already endangered in the streets of Venice :

"Currently, this original feminine ornament, the head ornament of these beautiful elegant women are trying to disappear. Venetians, especially you girls, you youngest, you almost seem to have contempt for your shawl, it seems that the dream of the cheerful and luminous dressmakers of Venice is coming to an end. Where are those small groups of anonymous people being able to wear this cloth, to put on their hats and to offer themselves to the admiration of the crowd firmly dressed in black, letting the kiss of the sun caress the beautiful thick blond, brown, chestnut hair. The shawl is about to disappear. This magnificent shawl worn naked by the decorative arts. Where are the ample folds, the shapes that caress the body and give it a seductive suppleness, an unequalled softness honored by the mysterious and erotic charms of the female body . »

Luxury shawls decorated with unreal flowers serve as evening coats and are preferred by beautiful and elegant Venetian ladies. But of all of them, the simplest and most elegant is the beautiful black shawl, decorated with a few silk flowers embroidered on the supple fabric that is the origin of the long thin fringes.

Why have Venetian women almost completely abandoned the shawl?
Before the war, the shawl was generally used by the whole female population, because the tradition pushed women to wear the scarf (el fazuol, in ancient times) as a proof of honesty and respectability. The headscarf 'el fazuol' was forbidden to prostitutes, and this prohibition remained for a long time in the morals.
Then the war came. Thousands of shops were forced to seek refuge in other Italian cities and stay away from Venice for a few years. By being in new environments where women did not wear headscarves, new fashions were made. Back in Venice, many shops were no longer offering these shawls.
With the devaluation of the lira, the price of shawls increased considerably, becoming a luxury, the women preferred to invest in hats, blouses, the prices ended up dissuading many other women who were still faithful to this tradition that they could not preserve.
Thus, within a few years after the war, this accessory of the traditional Venetian costume had almost completely disappeared from the streets of Venice.

Thanks to Sabrina and Betty from the shop "Sartoria dei Dogi" many old shawls are brought back to life, they make beautiful hand-embroidered shawls in perfect Venetian style.
The clothing workshop is one of the stages of the circuit of craftsmen proposed by "the other Venice".

For more information: info@laltravenezia.it

Source: "The Venetian shawl" by EMBaroni , published by Filippi Editor Venice