(slide show) A quick guide to Catholic hats

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Zucchetto

The zucchetto, although quite similar to the Jewish kippah, is in fact a descendant of the the Greek pilos, a brimless felt cap. Hence, it is a cousin of the beret. Meaning “little pumpkin” in Italian, it was in use in the early Middle Ages, basically to keep the clerics’ heads warm. The color of the zucchetto denotes the wearer's rank: the pope’s zucchetto is white; cardinals wear scarlet; archbishops and bishops wear rose-red amaranth; priests and deacons wear black; and ordained Franciscan friars wear brown.

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