Easter gifts have an ancient and fascinating history. Gifting is associated with the holiday known as Easter, and ancient Pagan rituals focused at this time of year upon the reinvention of the earth, the very green new growth that the illuminating sunlight and warmer weather encouraged the idea of birth and rebirth. The egg is a symbol of all these ideas, and was embraced by and is still in use in Christian Easter celebrations till this day.
Ancient History
To start with, eggs were painted and decorated and offered and accepted as gifts. They were offered as a romantic gift to admirers, at the same time servants and children. Eastern Orthodox people adopted this tradition by dying their eggs red to symbolize Christ's blood, and on Easter day they would crack the eggs, to manifest Christ breaking out of the tomb. With the improving technology, there were hollow eggs tailored from cardboard that were inundated with small gifts, typically food items.
Hollow eggs were also formed from sugar, and were garnished and decorated with sugar royal icings coats thus making it personalized Easter gifts. Of course the ultimate gift egg was the Fabergé egg, which was studded with real and precious jewels and was offered initially as a gift for the Czar of Russia. At this time chocolate easter eggs were crafted, and soon became a favorite holiday tradition. As an extension of the egg, the chick was also linked with Easter gift basket, and today children will often find marshmallow chicks as a token of homemade Easter gifts that was associated to the original dominance of the egg in the Easter celebration.
Types of Gifts
Different other types of gift you will likely to find in these days are rabbits, normally in the shape of a toy stuffed rabbit or rabbit-shaped chocolates and candies. This tradition also trysts with the early Pagan traditions. Rabbits are famous for their reproducing abilities, and this concept of birth, especially in early spring when rabbits tend to give birth to their young ones, inspired to link them as yet another symbol of this holiday celebration.
Clothing is also somewhat associated as an Easter gift basket. In the early Catholic days, if the faithful were baptized the night before Easter Sunday, they wore white robes for Easter week. If they were baptized earlier to this night, then they tend to wear new clothes. Everyone wearing their robes could then take part in an Easter parade.
Gifts from the garden are also associated to Easter. Easter lilies are usually given as gifts because they bloom around the time almost everywhere and found aplenty when Easter is celebrated. Easter gift basket ideas in olden days was generated with the fact and believe to carry gift items to the goddess with a hope that she would grant a good harvest and rain. German legend of an Easter hare, later on changed to rabbit, which would bring a full basket packed with sweets and colored eggs to children on Easter morning, which was brought to America by early German settlers, and the tradition continues till today.
