History | Mardi Gras Costumes, Beads and Accessories
History
It is generally accepted that Mardi Gras came to America in 1699 with the French explorer, Sieur d’Iberville. The festival had been celebrated as a major holiday in Paris since the Middle Ages. In French, “Mardi Gras” literally means “Fat Tuesday,” so named because it falls on the day before Ash Wednesday, the last day prior to Lent, a 40-day season of prayer and fasting observed by the Roman Catholic Church, which ends on Easter Sunday.The origin of “Fat Tuesday” is believed to have come from the ancient Pagan custom of parading a fat ox through the town streets. Such Pagan holidays were filled with excessive eating, drinking and general bawdiness prior to a period of fasting. The traditional colors of Mardi Gras are purple (symbolic of justice), green (symbolic of faith) and gold (symbolic of power). The 1892 Rex Parade theme in New Orleans first gave meaning to the representation of the official Mardi Gras colors.Carnevale in Venice was first recorded in 1296, when the Senate of the Republic issued an edict declaring the day before Lent as a public holiday.By the seventeenth century the Carnival of Venice, like that of Rome, had become a regular attraction for tourists from Northern Europe. It was claimed by some seventeenth-century guidebooks that upwards of 30,000 visitors would come to the city during the week before Ash Wednesday, along with around 10,000 prostitutes. When the Republic fell in 1797, Carnival was soon banned.The Carnival was reincarnated in February 1979, when,civic leaders in the city decided to sponsor a more formal festival. By 1984 The Carnival of Venice had largely mutated to be A Carnival in Venice. By the late 1990s and early 2000s, the numbers could actually be frightening—around 800,000 for the entire 2002 Carnival season.
The first documented sources, mentioning the use of Venitian masks can be found as far back as the 13th century. The document describes the practice of masked men throwing scented eggs at ladies and its prohibition by the council. By the 18th century the use of the Bauta and Moretta masks to conceal the identity of ladies and gentlemen in the gambling houses of Venice had become commonplace. Today masks are an integral part of both Mardi gras in New Orleans and Carnevale in Venice. It can be said that without a mask you are not properly in costume.
Mardi Gras Costumes and Accessories
Get into the spirit of Mardi Gras and let your imagination go. You can start with a few items that we have listed below: We have a great selection of Mardi Gras supplies on our online store.
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
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