Twelfth Night celebrations set Saturday

Twelfth Night was an end and a beginning. The holiday, which falls on Jan. 5, marked the end of the Christmas holiday, which began Dec. 25.

It was considered a time of merriment; revelers drank a holiday punch known as wassail and ate a cake (known as the king cake) with a bean and a pea in it. Those who found the legumes were made king and queen of the festivities. Twelfth Night also signified the beginning of Epiphany (Jan. 6), which commemorates the arrival of the three wise men who brought gifts to Jesus in Bethlehem.

Twelfth Night celebrations are on tap this week at two state facilities, the Crailo State Historic Site in Rensselaer and the Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site in Albany.

At Crailo, actors dressed in 17th century garb will offer historical holiday tidbits and demonstrate open-hearth cooking in the cellar kitchen. There will be festive music and lots of holiday decorations. The mansion’s “Salutations of the Season!” celebration will feature live music, 18th-century holiday fare, a bonfire and wassail toasts.

Revelers can attend both events by paying one admission price — $7 for adults, $6 for seniors and students and $2 for children ages 12 and under