A VIENNA COMMEDIA DELL'ARTE GROUP OF HANSWURST AND COMPANION

The distinctive topknot, black beard, pointed hat and heart on his chest all point to this figure being Hanswurst rather than Harlequin. Hanswurst was a variant of Harlequin and was particularly popular in Austria. The actor most famed for playing this part was Joseph Anton Stranitzky, who popularised the naive slapstick humour of this character in Vienna at the Kärntnertortheater in the early 18th century, see Meredith Chilton, Harlequin Unmasked, The Commedia dell'Arte and Porcelain Sculpture, Singapore, 2001, pp. 45-48. Perhaps because of his heavy black beard this became a trade mark of the character, often this was painted on the actor playing the part as beards were not fashionable at the time.