CUFFIA (late Lat. cofea). - Generally, a piece of cloth intended to protect or confine the hair of men or women, especially religious women.
Already known from classical times (v. the head of Aphrodite on the coins of Cinto; fourth century B.C). The c. was much used in ancient Rome in the form of a net (reticulum), often of gold. In the Middle Ages it is known for secular use in various forms and materials, as a simple veil with netting or also in the form of a hat, as may be seen in certain thirteenth- and fourteenth-century paintings (e.g., in the miniatures of the falconry of Federico II in the Vatican Apostolic Library).
At times the term c. is also to be understood as “mitre,” as may be observed in a bull of Leone IX to Liuthbaldo of Magonza (PL 143, p. 695).
The old forms have been preserved in various countries down to the present day, as in Provenza, Alsazia, Olanda, or Bretagna.