The Carnival of Venice is one of the most famous in the world and has very ancient origins, At the time of the "Serenissima" the carnival began on December 26 and ended the mardi gras but in some special years carnival lasted for up to 180 days. During the period of greatest glory of Venice , the sixteenth century, there were sumptuous celebrations and parties. At carnival citizens were allowed to wear masks, which made it impossible to make the difference between plebeian and patrician, young and old, rich and poor......



The place of celebration of Venice Carnival has always been St. Mark's Square. It hosted performances of all kinds often arranged by the "Compagnie della Calza" (Companies of Socks), which have been authentic private committees that organized special events and this associations were so important that they were controlled by the "Council of Ten".