Meanings
nounmascaron (plural mascarons)
plural mascarons
- architectureA carved, ornamental face, either human-like or grotesque, whose alleged function was originally to frighten away evil spirits so that they would not enter the building.
As one approaches nearer it is easy to see these round bosses transform themselves into mascarons, or sculptured decorative details, like the escutcheons and plaques so frequently seen stuck into the walls of so many civic edifices in Italy.
1909, Francis Miltoun, Castles and Chateaux of Old Burgundy, Boston: L C. Page & Company
Synonyms & antonyms
Also see
Origin
- Italianmascherone
- Frenchmascaron
- Englishmascaron
From French mascaron, from Italian mascherone.
More words from French, Italian
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan mascaró
- mascarócarved, ornamental face
Czech maskaron
- maskaroncarved, ornamental face
Danish maskaron
- maskaroncarved, ornamental face
Dutch mascaron
- mascaroncarved, ornamental face
Esperanto maskarono
- maskaronocarved, ornamental face
Finnish maskaroni
- maskaronicarved, ornamental face
French mascaron
- mascaroncarved, ornamental face
German Maskaron, Fratzenkopf
- Maskaroncarved, ornamental face
- Fratzenkopfcarved, ornamental face
Italian mascherone
- mascheronecarved, ornamental face
Polish maszkaron, maskaron
- maszkaroncarved, ornamental face
- maskaroncarved, ornamental face
Portuguese mascarão
- mascarãocarved, ornamental face
Russian маскарон
- маскарон (maskaron)carved, ornamental face
Spanish mascarón
- mascaróncarved, ornamental face
Swedish maskaron
- maskaroncarved, ornamental face
Cite this entry
APA
mascaron. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mascaron
MLA
“mascaron.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mascaron. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mascaron,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mascaron.
Source: mascaron on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.