by admin | Dec 6, 2023 | Uncategorized
By 1200 A.D., give or take a century, St. Nicholas’ years as a saint had begun to resemble Elvis Presley in his Ed Sullivan days. Just as Elvis was one of the most popular singers in the nation, playing packed shows to hoards of screaming young women but had not...
by admin | Dec 6, 2023 | Uncategorized
This illustration of Belsnickle, originally prepared for Alfred Shoemaker’s Christmas in Pennsylvania, was compiled based on details found in various publications. The Pennsylvania gift-giver Belsnickle is an American version of Pelznickel, a German name that...
by admin | Dec 6, 2023 | Uncategorized
This video is an interview with me that was created for a series called “Opening the Door” by the Golden Glow of Christmas Past. You can watch it here, or on the Golden Glow website, or on You Tube, and share with anyone you think would be...
by admin | Dec 6, 2023 | Uncategorized
This painting by Franz Xaver von Paumgartten, commissioned by an Austrian family in 1820, shows St. Nicholas with the family while Krampus, true to form, stands silently behind him. The evil helpers of St. Nicholas–Klaubauf, Cert, Houseker, Hans Trapp,...
![The Story of Belsnickle, Part II: From Herr Winter to Candy Container (posted on December 14, 2020)]()
by admin | Dec 6, 2023 | Uncategorized
In the Story of Belsnickle, Part I, I explained how Belsnickle could be the American version of the German gift-giver Pelsnickel, a seasonal activity patterned after guising, mumming and caroling, or a person (a “Belsnickler”) engaged in the seasonal fun of...
