A mask is any device which wholly or partially conceals the face. It is significant to note the word "person" derives from a Greek word meaning mask, or the role played by an actor in a dramatic performance. Thus our faces reveal our social selves: who we are in relation to other members of our society by virtue of the roles we play in it.

Persona, "the mask," is related to personality, the self or ego we reveal to the world. Masks have the ability to conceal, change, or transform the "person" behind the image into something or someone else. This metaphoric "else," this "as if" quality of masks makes them both playful and powerful, and relates them to ritual, religion, and myth. Masks allow us to pretend, and much more.

(Excerpt from LORE Magazine )