With the passing of glorious Rome the mask became a degraded thing, abhorred by the early Christians. Throughout the Dark Ages in Europe the mask was used only in the revels, and to celebrate the coming of the New Year and the springtime. Gradually the spirit of revelling slipped into the Church. In England and in France, during the XIIth Century, there was a very famous revel called “The Feast of Fools” that began at vespers on the last day of the year. Two equally famous revels were those of the “Boy Bishop” and the “Feast of the Ass,” celebrated with rout and mock ritual. Such were the excesses indulged in that Pope Innocent III, in 1207 A. D., formally prohibited masking in the church. But it was not until the XVth Century that these revels were effectively driven out. We hear next of the mask in scriptural plays, such as those given at Christmas time. These plays were performed outside the church. During the XIVth Century, we discover the guilds or corporations of craftsmen employing the mask in their religious plays, in honor of royal visits, and in their May Day processions. In fact, all over Europe, at that time wherever the mystery, miracle, or morality play was given, we are sure to find at least occasional use of the mask. [Illustration: _Masks_ _Upper Row_: _Bishop_, _Queen_, _King_ _Middle Row_: _Lady-in-Waiting_, _Crusader_, _Child_ _Lower Row_: _Jester_, _Old Woman_, _Little Jack_ ] In Italy, from the XIVth to the XVIIth Century, the mask was worn by Harlequin, Pantaloon, Pulcinella, the Doctor, and all the characters of the _Commedia dell’arte_. In the XVIIIth Century, the comedy theaters of France also affected the mask as a dramatic requisite. During the XIXth Century the mask had degenerated to the crude false faces used by Europeans or their descendants in America. In Philadelphia, children wear masks at Thanksgiving. Masks appear at the celebration of the Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and the old-time custom of wearing masks at Hallowe’en still prevails. A few years ago a group of artists, foremost among them W. T. Benda, who knew the great and beautiful tradition of the mask and had felt its strange fascination, lifted the mask to a new level of distinction. Anyone who has had the good fortune to see one of their masks cannot escape its spell nor can he rest until he finds an occasion to make a mask. [Illustration: [Mask]] [Illustration: [Mask]] CHAPTER II Occasions for Wearing the Mask We all know the thrill of wearing a mask, but an entirely new and strange thrill awaits him who wears a mask of his own creation. Anyone who has imagination is apt to turn away from the ordinary commercial mask, because his fancy can picture something much more clever and interesting.