EASTER BENNY TRADITIONS
Symbol Of Spring Fertility The Easter bunny, a popular Easter symbol in the United States, had its origin in pre-Christian fertility lore. Hares and rabbits were the most fertile animals then known, and were symbolic of abundant new life in the spring season. The bunny eventually acquired a cherished role in the celebration of Easter in many countries as the legendary producer of eggs for children. What seems to be the first mention of the Easter bunny and his eggs is a short admonition in a German book of 1572: “Do not worry if the bunny escapes you; should we miss his eggs, then we shall cook the nest.” In a German book of the seventeenth century the story that the Eastern bunny lays eggs and hides them in the garden, is called “an old fable.”
In many sections of Germany the Easter bunny was believed to lay red eggs on Maundy Thursday and eggs of other colours the night before Easter Day. The first Easter bunnies, made of pastry and sugar, were popular in southern Germany at the beginning of the last century. They are now a favourite delicacy for children in many lands.
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Bibliographic details
Press, Volume CII, Issue 30093, 29 March 1963, Page 2
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198EASTER BENNY TRADITIONS Press, Volume CII, Issue 30093, 29 March 1963, Page 2
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