Why We Wear Costumes on Halloween

The history of Halloween costumes explains why we go from hiding from ghosts to dressing as Spider-Man. From Samhain bonfires in Ireland and Scotland to soot-faced guising, soul cakes on All Souls' Day and the horse-skull Mari Lwyd, it traces the medieval origins, the Irish famine migration to America, the first 'trick or treat' printings and Ben Cooper's $3 vinyl masks to the TV era that flipped scary into superheroes.