 The History of Santa Claus
Santa
Claus is a culmination of various historical legends.He
is also known as Father Christmas, Père Noël,
Kris Kringle and St. Nicholas.
The American version received
his inspiration from the Dutch Sinter Klaus when settlers arrived
in New York. Popular author, Washington Irving gave Americans
their first detailed information about the Dutch version of
Saint Nicholas.
This Dutch-American Saint Nick
reached his fully American form in an 1823 poem by Clement
Clarke Moore. The poem, titled, "A
Visit From Saint Nicholas" (more commonly known as "The
Night Before Christmas") provided such details as the
names of the reindeer,Santa's laugh, and the method by which
Saint Nicholas returns up the chimney.Moore's poetry also described
Santa as an elf. The new image of Santa Claus was
further elaborated by Thomas Nast, an illustrator who depicted
a rotund Santa for Harper's magazine in the mid to late 1800's.
In illustrations for Coca-Cola advertisements, Santa was introduced
in 1931 as a human.
Various artists now depict
Santa as an "Olde World" decorative
figure. This site is a gallery and offering of the Old World
Style Santa Christmas Figures as created by Connecticut artist,
Helen Hine.
See How Your Handcrafted Santa is Made.
Learn More About Your Santa Artist. |
