Sunday 24 December 2017
Happy Christmas
Happy Christmas to you all.
The print is a PF in my collection. It is by Czech artist Frantisek Emler.
Monday 18 December 2017
Czech Christmas Decorations
You will find beautiful
glass Christmas tree decorations in gift shops and on Christmas
market stalls all over the Czech Republic. The tradition of making
these dainty baubles in this country goes back to the 19th
century when glass decorations first replaced apples which had been
used for centuries. Now the Czech craftsmen and factories have to
compete with cheap imports from China, but the quality of the Czech
product is holding its own.
There is a wide range
of styles to choose from. From the contemporary twist (sometimes
literally) on the old designs, to ones which would not have looked
out of place in a Victorian parlour. In addition to the blown balls
and twisted glass, the Czechs also make decorations out of beads. I
found this complex airplane in an “antik” shop on the Castle
Steps in Cesky Krumlov. Most Czech antique shops will have a
selection of old decorations for sale.
The majority of Czech
glass decoration manufacture takes place in the mountainous north and
east. This is because the mountains had the raw materials for glass
manufacture: sand, water and timber for the fires. Christmas tree
decorations is part of a much wider tradition of Czech glass making,
which I intend to talk about in future posts.
Thursday 7 December 2017
Letters to the Baby Jesus
If you are thinking about sending a letter to Baby Jesus you better get a move on. The special Baby Jesus post box opened on the 3rd and will close on the 10th, when the White Lady will be visiting the town to take your letters to the Baby.
In the Czech Republic tradition it is not Santa Claus who brings the children their presents on Christmas Eve but the Baby Jesus (Ježíšek). It is therefore Baby Jesus to whom children address their letters.
The tradition of Baby Jesus goes back at least 400 years and has survived Nazism and Communism, but since the Velvet Revolution Czech children have come under a cultural and commercial onslaught from the West. Is it any surprise that the Baby Jesus is under threat from the American Santa Klaus? Part of the problem is that no one knows what Baby Jesus looks like, unlike the highly branded Santa. Is the Baby a baby? No one knows.
In response to the Santaization of Christmas the Czechs have fought back - there are organisations set up to save the Baby Jesus. As one website states "We fight for traditional Czech Christmas and practices. We want the Baby Jesus to be saved from the invasion of the red fat man and his reindeer underlings." But it is going to be a hard fight.
If you are wondering where to send your letter, please note Baby Jesus does not live in Lapland or at the North Pole, but like a true Czech he lives in the small town of Boží Dar in the Czech Mountains.
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