Unusual holidays. Christmas Ball Giving Day

December 25th is the Day of Giving Christmas Balls. This holiday, dedicated to Catholic Christmas, helps create a New Year's mood, belief in miracles and magic.

In Europe, there has long been a tradition of giving relatives or children who stopped by the house to wish Merry Christmas a ball they liked. The shape of the toy refers us to the apple - a symbol of harvest and fertility. The ancestors of the ancient Celts and other Europeans decorated Christmas trees with oranges, nuts, gingerbread and candy canes. Each decoration carried a special meaning, personifying a holy blessing, the mystery of divine providence or eternal life. An apple, which was treated to loved ones in honor of the holiday, occupied a place of honor among edible toys, which became the prototype of the Christmas tree ball. Beautiful fruits with plump sides, which were specially selected in the fall and stored until winter, were the main decoration of the spruce.

The first decorative balls were made in 1848 in Thuringia. The outgoing year turned out to be a low harvest, and it was decided to replace apples with toys made of transparent or colored glass. Soon their production began to be carried out en masse. In addition to balls, glassblowers made various figurines that made German craftsmen from Saxony famous throughout the world. Glass toys were expensive, so they could not completely replace homemade jewelry. Fruits and sweets were still hung on Christmas trees.

Source: https://kakoj-segodnja-prazdnik.com/