The Advent Calendar originated in Germany in the early 18th Century when people would count the days of Advent by simply drawing a chalk line on the door each day, beginning on 1st December. Some families had more elaborate means of marking the days such as lighting a new candle or hanging a small religious picture on the wall each day. The 24 candles might also be placed on a structure which was known as an ‘Advent Clock’.
The first known paper Advent calendar was handmade in 1851 and the first commercially printed Advent calendar was produced in Hamburg in 1902 or 1903. In 1904 an Advent Calendar was inserted in the newspaper “Neues Tagblatt Stuttgart ” as a gift for their readers. In 1908 Gerhard Lang, a printer in the firm Reinhold & Lang of Munich, made 24 little coloured pictures that could be affixed to a piece of cardboard. (When he was a child his mother made him an Advent Calendar with 24 “Wibbele” (little sweets) which had been stuck on cardboard.) This was the first printed Advent Calendar, although without windows to open, published in 1908. This Calendar was named “Christmas-Calendar” or “Munich Christmas-Calendar”. Several years later Lang introduced a calendar with 24 little doors. He created and marketed at least 30 designs before his firm went out of business in the 1930s. At the same time, Sankt Johannis printing company started producing religious Advent Calendars with Bible verses instead of pictures behind the doors.
Advent calendars disappeared during World War II as paper was rationed and it was forbidden to produce Calendars with pictures. After the war, in 1946, Richard Sellmer of Stuttgart resurrected the commercial Advent Calendar and is largely responsible for its continued widespread popularity. We know that Advent Calendars filled with Chocolate was already available in 1958.
Some advent calendars come in the form of books with 24 individual stories or chapters. In Scandinavia, it is common to have a series of ‘Julekalender’ programmes on the television, one for each day up until Christmas. German calendars still have 24 doors, although some which appear in English-speaking countries have a special 25th door or pocket for Christmas Day. Some modern calendars have up to 31 doors and also include the Jewish festival of Hanukkah and/or New Year’s Eve, with the latter sort sometimes not containing a chocolate for New Year’s Day due to the fact that everyone will be on a diet.
With the age of the internet came the online advent calendar, many of which do not have much to do with the Christmas Story. However there have been some very good online Advent calendars. Often you will not be allowed to look at the days early! Here are some you might like to look at:
Why we are waiting – The official Church of England site counting down to Christmas. Sign up for a reminder.
Paperless Christmas – 25 daily thought provoking videos from Bible Reading Fellowship. Sign up for a reminder! Starts Advent Sunday.
Smile a day – Scroll down and click on the stars – uses pictures and carols
Woodlands School – Christmas round the world
Kent Education – Interactive fun for Key Stage 1 children
In addition,
The Bible Society has a lovely online illustrated version of the Christmas Story
(From various sources)
Return to Index for the Parish of Walthamstow Magazine, December 2008/January 2009
