24 Days of Tradition: Pickle Ornaments
Ah yes, the tradition of hanging a pickle-shaped Christmas ornament in a tree. As the story goes, the pickle is the last ornament to be hung on the tree and the first child in the family who finds it gets an extra present. It’s a classically German tradition, like drinking beer from boots, Oktoberfest, and black forest cake. Or is it? We don’t mean to cause a pickle but that quintessential German custom doesn’t appear to be German at all.
So where did it come from? There are a couple of different theories that abound. The first known appearance of pickle ornaments came about in the 1880s. The American retail company Woolworth’s began selling a variety of fruit and vegetable-shaped ornaments imported from Germany. It appears that the pickle was among them and quickly became one of the most popular. From there, a story was started about the pickle ornaments being tradition in Germany, where they were hung last on the tree and turned into a competition for who could find it first. The tradition being started by a rumour is perhaps the most likely origin story.
There are two other possible origins of the pickle tradition. One tells the tale of a Bavarian soldier (born in an area that later became a part of Germany) who fought in the American Civil War. The soldier was imprisoned by the opposing army and close to death from starvation. On Christmas eve, he begged the guard for one last pickle -apparently a favourite of his- before he died and the guard took pity on him. The story says the pickle gave him the strength to live on and, when he was set free, he hid a pickle in his Christmas tree every year after. The other story features a holiday staple, Saint Nicholas (you can read about the tradition of Saint Nicholas Day here). The story tells of two Spanish children who were killed by an evil innkeeper and hidden in a barrel of pickles. Saint Nicholas found the children and brought them back to life and his miracle is supposedly honoured every year by hanging a pickle in a Christmas tree.
Although the origins of this not-actually-German custom are decidedly murky, it can’t be denied that it is a historical custom that hopefully won’t go anywhere for years to come.
Think you know which country roller skates to Mass on Christmas day? Come back tomorrow to find out! And, read the other traditions we’ve written about in our 24 Days of Tradition series. Click the links below!
December 1: Cavalcade of Lights — Toronto
December 3: KFC Dinner — Japan
December 4: Spider Web Trees — Ukraine
