Easter Eggs

Easter Eggs

Perhaps the most venerable symbol of Easter, Easter eggs have long been acknowledged as a symbol of continuing life and fertility since pre-Christian spring celebrations. Given as springtime gifts by the ancient Greeks, Persians, and Chinese at their spring festivals, the egg also appears in pagan mythology, where the Heaven and Earth were thought to have been formed from two halves of an egg.

Eggs become a prominent Easter icon as they were perceived to be the symbol of Jesus' Resurrection. Even as early as the Middle Ages, eggs were colored to be given as gifts at Easter. Forbidden during the solemn fast of Lent, eggs were reintroduced on Easter Sunday, both as part of the feasting and as gifts for family, friends, and servants.

Besides their religious connotations, Easter eggs have given rise to many exotic traditions and practices. The coloring of eggs is an established art, and eggs are often dyed, painted, and otherwise decorated. Various Easter games have imbibed the use of eggs: parents would hide eggs for children to find, and children would roll eggs down hills. These practices live on in Easter egg hunts and egg rolls.

The most elaborate Easter egg traditions appear to have emerged in Eastern Europe. In Poland and Ukraine, eggs were often painted silver and gold. Pysanky eggs were created by carefully applying wax in patterns to an egg. The egg was then dyed, wax would be reapplied in spots to preserve that color, and the egg was boiled again in other shades. The result was a multi-color striped or patterned egg.

Here are some other prominent Easter symbols ... Click to learn more:

• The Easter Lilly symbolizes the resurrection of Jesus because the shell represents the tomb of Jesus and the flower that blooms represents life after death.

• The first chocolate easter eggs recipes were made in Europe in the nineteenth century.
• Vegreville, Canada is the home of the largest Easter egg in the world. The Easter egg or Ukrainian 'Pysanka,' was made in 1975 to commemorate early Ukrainian settlements in an area east of Edmonton. It weighed 5,000 pounds, and was 25.7 feet long.
• Pysanka is a specific term used for the practice of Easter egg painting.
• Most children (74%) eat the ears of their chocolate bunny first. 13% eat the feet first, and 10% eat the tails first.
• In 1878 U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes and his wife Lucy officially opened the White House grounds to the children of the area for egg rolling on Easter Monday. The event has been held on the South Lawn ever since, except during World War I and World War II.
• The initial baskets of Easter were given the appearance of bird's nests.

Eggs, and bunnies, and jelly beans, oh my! Our selection of Easter crafts, recipes, and activities will have your whole family excited for Easter.

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