Christmas Ornament Set – Nativity Scene (Sculptural)

Christmas smells of juniper and sweet drinks, it can be heard in grandfather’s greetings, it chatters between the lines of a carol and rustles in the haystack. Koza Dereza Manufacture has embodied all this in the “Vertep” collection to give you the most valuable thing – a warm Christmas memory.

With childlike sincerity, each toy is made by hand. Craftswomen work magic with wood chips, buckwheat husks, paper, combine the ingredients with a glue mixture and then bake. On the finished products, artists dance with brushes, drawing familiar images of the Ukrainian nativity scene.

Girl – carol singer

As soon as dusk fell, a crowd of carol singers would grace homes with songs and greetings. At first, only young men sang carols, but now girls are also joining in. The carol singers choose traditional attire, including brocade scarves and fur coats.

The Tsar

In the legends about the birth of Jesus, they are depicted as magi, priests, or even scholars. But for the nativity scene, the figures of the three kings are familiar – following the star of Bethlehem, they paved the way to pay homage to the Messiah. Angel In the past, the doors were not locked on Christmas, because each family waited for the nativity scene to arrive. The first to enter the house was the Angel. As a harbinger of peace, he announced the birth of Jesus and wished the owners good luck. Boy – a carol singer Carol singing has always been a sacred event. A group of people walked in a line – in front of them was an astrologer with a colorful star, then a bell ringer, who announced that the carolers were coming, as well as young men with bags of gifts.

Death

Death is always depicted in a dark robe and with a long scythe. However, in the nativity scene, her clothes are white, and she herself is silent and barely visible. Her role is to follow Herod in order to punish the king of Judea at the end of the play.

Merchant

The nativity scene in Ukraine has existed since the Baroque period, but later secular heroes were added to the usual biblical plots. One of them is an enterprising man who played a clever and witty personality in the play. The Devil is the most mischievous character in the nativity scene. With horns, pitchforks, and a fur coat, he wriggled in the crowd, collecting treats. This role was given only to seasoned performers who participated in the play year after year. The Goat was a totem animal since pagan times. Later, its image was reinterpreted in folklore, and it became a character in the winter mysteries. Traditionally, the Goat calls for prosperity to the family with its stomping.