Love Is Blind; War is Hell

Masks are found in some form in every culture across the world and throughout time. In ritual, performance, war and sport, masks immediately transform and transfix us.

Identity was a central theme for Shakespeare. In comedy and tragedy, masks came in two forms: the transparent mask, or persona, and the physical mask. Hamlet's mask was his madness, disguising his true and vengeful self. A masquerade ball is the premise for the wooing and the winning of love for Benedict and Beatrice, Claudio and Hero, and of course, Romeo and Juliet.

Alleged Death Mask of William Shakespeare discovered 1842

During the taking of the Bastille (1789), it was reported that a skeleton was found, still chained to the wall, and with an iron mask next to him. Just who was the mysterious prisoner in the iron mask? An illegitimate half-brother of King Louis XIV? Or the King's twin? An heir to the English crown? Or a nobleman's valet imprisoned to prevent the spread of scandalous tales?

"The Man in the Iron Mask"

A dashing masked outlaw defending the people of the land against tyrannical officials and other villains. Who was that masked man? Zorro? The Scarlet Pimpernel? Spring Heeled Jack? The Black Eagle? Or The Dread Pirate Roberts? Just remember, people in masks cannot be trusted.

Rudolph Valentino in "The Eagle"

The masks worn by the seventeenth century Plague Doctors were truly sinister costumes with their wide brim hats, heavy cloaks, and long beak masks. Designed as protection from the putrid air thought at the time to carry the disease, the beaks were filled with fragrant plants such as lavender. The costume provided little protection though and plague doctors had relatively short careers. Modern theory links spreading of the disease partly on infected fleas traveling in the long cloaks worn by the practitioners. They were truly harbingers of death. 

Plague Doctor

Armor, whether in war or sport, incorporates the mask as a means of protection, intimidation, and dehumanization. I don't know about you, but for me there is nothing more frightening than a hockey mask! Is it Friday the 13th yet?