The Very First Christmas Tree?

11 responses to “The Very First Christmas Tree?”

1. 

   longing mask

   Dec 19, 2009 at 4:25 pm

   Very Christmasy.

   Reply
2. 

   ukweli

   Dec 19, 2009 at 5:16 pm

   …which they then burned.

   Reply
3. 

   m.p.moody

   Dec 19, 2009 at 5:28 pm

   quaint…has a tilt-shift look….intentional?

   Reply
4. 

   Erik Charlton

   Dec 19, 2009 at 7:23 pm

   Fantastic image…It even looks a bit unreal. HDR?

   Reply
5. 

   Jaako

   Dec 19, 2009 at 7:48 pm

   it’s hovering around -18 ºC in Tallinn these days!

   I’ve been meaning to go take pictures of the Christmas market, but its just tooooo cold…

   Reply
6. 

   Dr DAD (Daniel A D’Auria MD)

   Dec 20, 2009 at 12:53 am

   I agree..does have a "tilt shift" look. Nice shot.

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7. 

   nhr

   Dec 21, 2009 at 4:05 pm

   > Just read that the very first Xmas tree came from my homeland of Estonia…

   The Baltic origin hypothesis seems quite plausible.

   At the Swedish midsummer solstice celebrations I witnessed, the decorated maypole always ended up being burned in a nocturnal bonfire. I’m not sure, however, whether that tree burning is supposed to be a traditional custom, or if these particular Swedes I hanged out with happened to have a pyromaniacal bent (^^;

   Anyway, the notion that some Baltic people would also have the idea to decorate, then burn a tree on the antipodal solstice — which typically falls within a few days of Xmas — doesn’t seem so far-fetched.

   Christian culture hasn’t shunned from co-opting celebrations — like Easter — originally attached to "heathen" calendars, after all.

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8. 

   cannpix

   Dec 22, 2009 at 5:19 pm

   "when unmarried merchants sang and danced with the town’s girls around a tree, which they then burned"

   They burned the town’s girls? Savages!

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9. 

   TomiTapio

   Dec 23, 2009 at 6:11 pm

   Good photo!

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10. 

    ✿ Triin Q

    Dec 31, 2009 at 3:29 am

    Estonians only started with this story after Latvians had advertised Riga as a birth place of Christmas tree (in 1510) in the first place. I guess it was a surprise for Estonians that you could sell your country with something like this. We are bit slow! Now most of the world knows Latvia as a birthplace but actually Estonian historians mention the tree long time earlier than their. This photo is extremely nice! But I know the reality is even nicer, I’ve been there.

    Reply
11. 

    jurvetson

    Dec 31, 2009 at 4:43 am

    me too, and I’d have to agree with you

    So the Estonians have to set the Latvians straight about 1441 pre-dating 1510… =)

    Reply