Some suggest that its origins date back to the late 16th century, when the Protestant reformer Martin Luther organised egg hunts for his congregation. The men would hide the eggs for the women and children to find. This was a nod to the story of the resurrection, in which the empty tomb was discovered by women.
A wild rabbit at Brodsworth Hall and Gardens. However links between hares and rabbits and Easter go back earlier in central Europe. Hares were associated with fertility and with the Virgin Mary, and sometimes appear in paintings of the Virgin and Christ Child, and also in illuminated manuscripts. Custom had it that the hare would bring a basket of brightly painted eggs for all the children who had been good, and these would be hidden around the house and garden for the children to find.
As a child the future Queen Victoria enjoyed egg hunts at Kensington Palace. These were put on by her mother, the German-born Duchess of Kent. Victoria and Albert continued this German tradition, hiding eggs for their own children to find on Maundy Thursday. The eggs were probably hard-boiled and decorated, as was the custom at the time. Follow us through an exploration of the history, tradition, and meaning of the Easter egg hunt.
Easter dates back to the ancient pagans in Europe who believed the Spring Equinox symbolized the return of the sun god. The hare, a symbol for the goddess of fertility and lovers in the springtime, eventually evolved into the long-loved tradition of the Easter Bunny. Beginning in the 15th century, Christians adapted the pagan tradition by connecting the Easter egg hunt to the resurrection of Jesus.
The traditionally red colored Easter eggs, which symbolized the blood of Christ, were hidden by men during the Protestant Reformation for the women and children to find. It is said that this search and find is a reminder of the joy the people, specifically the women of the bible, felt when they found the empty tomb of Jesus following his resurrection. Today, Easter is a celebration of his resurrection as well as the end of Lent , a day period in which many Christians give up certain vices or habits they find pleasurable.
So what does all of this have to do with the Easter egg hunt? Not much, actually. As we just discussed, Easter eggs are largely a pagan tradition, and the egg hunt is no different. Although its roots aren't totally clear, it's widely believed that egg hunts date back to the s , when the Pennsylvania Dutch believed in an egg-laying hare called Oschter Haws or Osterhase. Therefore, Easter is observed on a Sunday anywhere between March 22 and April 25 every year.
The custom of an Easter egg hunt began because children believed that the Easter hare laid eggs in the grass. In South German folk traditions it was customary to add extra obstacles to the game by placing them into hard-to reach places among nettles or thorns.
Egg rolling is very popular in England and is an Easter Monday sport. Hard-boiled eggs are rolled down a hill. Customs differ from place to place. The winner's egg may be the one that rolls the farthest, survives the most rolls, or is rolled between two pegs. In the United States in the early 's century, Dolly Madison, known for her parties, and the wife of the fourth American President, James Madison, organized an egg roll in Washington, D.
She had been told that Egyptian children used to roll eggs against the pyramids so she invited the children of Washington to roll hard-boiled eggs down the hilly lawn of the new Capitol building! This continued, except during the Civil War. The event moved in to the White House for the Egg Roll when officials complained that the event was ruining the Capitol lawn.
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