This year, we all have to live with our memories due to the coronavirus pandemic worldwide. We can not travel and spend the magnificent festive days of Christmas in countries like Israel, Austria, Germany, Finland, the Czech Republic, Malta or Italy. As Christmas is just around the corner, I remember one of my first visits to Italy (that I like so much) many years ago, when I learnt a very special Italian Christmas tradition while visiting the huge Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. This old and still alive tradition very well represents the Italian Christmas spirit and fine decoration, called presepio or presepe, also known as manger scene or nativity scene, symbolizing the Holy family with the newborn Jesus in Bethlehem.
During the Christmas season thousands of these presepe are carefully arranged all over the country: in churches, city squares, front gardens and private homes. Very often the whole town of Bethlehem is recreated in detail around the barn with the manger of Jesus: the marketplace with stalls and craft workshops, different animals and houses, representing people’s daily lives and reflecting local customs and traditions, that are certainly not from the time of Jesus’s birth. Even though the presepe is set-up before Christmas, traditionally the figurine of the infant Jesus should only be added to the manger on Christmas Day, 25 December.
Saint Francis of Assisi is credited with inaugurating the tradition, by creating the first nativity scene in 1223 in the small town of Greccio in central Italy. But Saint Francis’ nativity scene was a living one, with real people and animals featuring in the Biblical roles of Virgine Mary, Child Jesus, Saint Joseph, the Magi, the shepherds and the angels played by local villagers in the recreated portal of Bethlehem.
Even today, living nativity scenes are also organised during the Christmas season in many cities of Italy. Local volunteers’ groups stage elaborate presentations of the Christmas story on town squares and indoor areas, or as a procession along the main streets of a town or city. In some cases, such living nativity scenes can have hundreds of participants.
The oldest nativity scene is a true artwork, carved from white marble, dating back to the 13th century and still exists. Its author, Arnolfo di Cambio, a renowned Gothic sculptor and architect, worked in Florence and Rome. He created this marble nativity scene in 1290 that can be seen in Rome, in the Museum of the Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore.
The art form of nativity scene can be traced back to the beginning of the 18th century. Traditionally, the best and skilled artists of nativity scenes come from Naples where the making of Christmas scenes is a form of art which has been mastered for many centuries with talent and creativity. The most elaborate scenes reached their artistic apogee. The Museo Nazionale di San Martino hosts Naples’ largest collection of nativity scenes, including the biggest one with 162 people, 80 animals and 450 miniature objects.
In Naples from November and throughout the Christmas period the shops in Via San Gregorio Armeno kept by the best artisans of the Neapolitan tradition are almost taken by storm by locals or foreigners, where easy to find all necessary elements for building his or her own wonderful nativity scene or to buy a nice Italian creation.
It has to be mentioned that different traditions of nativity scenes emerged in different countries on Italian influence, such as: Austria, Germany, the Czech Republic (former Bohemia), France (Provence), Poland and the Vatican, even on the American continent.
One of the most famous international event during the Christmas season is the International Exhibition of Nativity Scenes, which has been held each December/January in Verona, in the Roman amphitheatre, the Arena di Verona or in the Gran Guardia Palace for 36 years, with the participation of more than 400 cribs and their exhibitors from all over the world. Unfortunately, the event of this year had to be cancelled.
The Czech stocking-weaver Tomáš Krýza (1838 – 1918) was a burgher from Jindřichův Hradec (a town in South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic). He had worked on the crèche for over 60 years. The scene covers around 60 m² (length 17m and height 2m). It contains 1389 figures of humans and animals of which 133 are moveable. The material used was wood, flour, sawdust, gypsum and fish glue. The mechanical parts were originally powered manually, now single electrical motor is used. Since 1998 this nativity scene has been mentioned in Guinness Book of World Records as the largest one in the world.
The oldest part of the nativity scene depicts the birth of Jesus. Themes from the Bible and scenes of everyday life in the 19th century Bohemia inspired the rest. The crèche is now exhibited in the of Museum of Jindřichův Hradec. This region has a tradition of Nativity scenes, the first written record comes from 1579. In 1936, the museum obtained two other large nativity scenes created by Emanuela and Bohdan Steinocher. These are placed next to the Krýza’s crèche for Christmas 2020.
Italy is the birthplace of the Christmas Carol, as well. Allegedly, St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) introduced the Christmas tradition of carolling, when he started to play the nativity scenes in 1223. Unlike the solemn church hymns, carols were simple songs which people could sing anywhere as an expression of their joy at the birth of Jesus Christ.
Anna Popper
