Do you know the history of the Advent Calendar?

Using an Advent calendar to count the days until Christmas is a cherished family tradition in many homes, but where did Advent calendars come from? Well, like so many Christmas traditions embraced in the UK, the Advent calendar dates back to Victorian times, and actually comes from Germany! Let’s take a look at the history of the traditional Advent calendar and nativity scenes. 

The first known advent calendar was created in the late 1800’s for a child named Gerhard Lang by his German, Protestant mother. Inspired by his memories of the squares of cardboard with pinned tiny sweets she made to eat over the Advent period, Gerhard then went on to form a printing company that produced the first ever commercially available Advent calendars, featuring 24 little windows that could be opened, one for each day of Advent, and behind each window was a picture or poem related to the Nativity story.

The idea of the Advent calendar soon caught on, and by the early 20th century, commercial Advent calendars were being produced all over Germany. Often made of cardboard, these calendars originally featured images of traditional German Christmas characters such Saint Nicholas, Christkindl (the traditional Christmas gift-bringer in Austria), elves and other holiday-related scenes. Soon available around the world, it actually wasn’t until the mid-20th century that what we now think of as the “traditional” Nativity scene itself began appearing on commercial Advent calendars.

Today, Advent calendars come in all shapes and sizes, you can find them made out of wood, fabric, paper, or even chocolate! Instead of windows featuring small pictures or poems, many modern Advent calendars now come with small gifts like sweets or sparkly trinkets. No matter what form they take, Advent calendars are a fun and meaningful way to countdown to Christmas.

Our pick of the 2022 Advent calendars at Cards For Good Causes:

Nativity Square Advent calendar 
Featuring a traditional Christian nativity scene: Mary and baby Jesus are with Joseph, the Wise Men, the Shepherds in the barn, and have a whole host of farm animals surrounding them. This is a wonderful Advent calendar for those who like to keep their Christmas traditions firmly rooted in Christianity.

Religious Advent calendar
Featuring the beautiful work of Alison Gardiner, this stunning advent calendar follows a religious procession outside a glorious cathedral.  Each window opens to show off an illustration of coloured stained glass as you countdown through December

Traditional Paper Advent calendar
Follow Santa and his reindeer as they fly high over snowy forests in the Christmas Eve sky by moonlight. This jolly scene will keep you cheerful through the long nights to come!

You can view the entire Cards For Good Causes Advent calendar range here

If you have an Advent calendar at home, we hope you enjoyed learning a little about the history behind them and are looking forward to opening your Advent calendar each day as you countdown to Christmas!