The Easter Egg in Art History

The Easter Egg in Art History

By Carolee Ross

When did recorded civilization begin decorating eggs?

The egg, decorated with colors or gilt, has been acknowledged as a symbol of continuing life and resurrection since pre-Christian spring celebrations. It has represented mystery, magic, medicine, and omens or portents of things to come. It is the universal symbol of Easter celebrations throughout the world and has been dyed, painted, adorned and embellished in celebration of its special symbolism.

In Pagan times the egg represented the rebirth of the earth. The long, hard winter was over; the earth burst forth and was reborn just as the egg miraculously burst forth with life and was believed to have special powers.The name of this festival, itself, shows its heathen origin. "Easter" is derived from Eastre, or Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of spring and dawn. There also is some historical connection existing between the words "Easter" and "East," where the sun rises. The festival of Eostre was celebrated on the day of the Vernal Equinox (spring). Traditions associated with the festival of the Teutonic fertility Goddess survive in the Easter rabbit and colored eggs.


The Romans, Gauls, Chinese, Egyptians and Persians all cherished the egg as a symbol of the Universe and practiced giving eggs as gifts at their spring festivals. The egg also appears in pagan mythology, where it represents the Sun-Bird being hatched from the World Egg. In some pagan customs, Heaven and Earth were thought to have been formed from two halves of an egg.

The Egg as a Christian Symbol

With the advent of Christianity the symbolism of the egg changed to represent, not nature's rebirth, but the rebirth of man. Christians embraced the egg symbol and likened it to the tomb from which Christ rose. As the egg was an obvious symbol to early Christians of Jesus' Resurrection, it was felt to be a most appropriate and holy part of the Easter tide celebration.

Decorating and coloring eggs for Easter was the custom in England during the middle ages. King Edward I's household accounts for 1290 include the purchase of hundreds of eggs to be distributed to his household. In the 17th century, Pope Paul V blessed the humble egg in a prayer to be used in England, Scotland, and Ireland, saying "Bless, O Lord, we beseech Thee, this Thy creature of eggs, that it may become a wholesome substance to Thy faithful servants, eating in thankfulness to Thee, on account of the Resurrection of Our Lord."

Forbidden during the solemn fast of Lent, eggs were reintroduced on Easter Sunday, both as part of the feasting and as gifts for family, friends, and servants. Easter was originally called Pashch, the original name given to Passover during the times of Jesus Christ. The original name was Paschal, from the Jewish feast of Passover, referring to the Israelite's passage through the Red Sea (Exodus 13: 17-14:30) and later adapted as Jesus' passage through death to new life.

Polish Egg Folklore

Old Polish legends blended folklore and Christian beliefs and firmly attached the egg to the Easter celebration. One legend tells of the time the Virgin Mary gave eggs to the soldiers at the cross. She begged them to be less cruel and she wept. Mary's tears fell upon the eggs, spotting them with dots of brilliant color.

Another Polish legend tells of the time Mary Magdalene went to the sepulchre to anoint the body of Jesus. She had with her a basket of eggs to serve as a repast. When she arrived at the sepulchre and uncovered the eggs, the pure white shells had miraculously taken on a rainbow of colors.

The Tradition of Faberge Eggs

Faberge Egg Basket
with jeweled flowers
courtesy of Google

The most famous decorated Easter eggs were those made by the well-known goldsmith, Peter Carl Faberge. In 1883 the Russian Czar, Alexander, commissioned Faberge to make a special Easter gift for his wife, the Empress Marie. The first Faberge egg was an egg within an egg. It had an outside shell of platinum and enameled white, which opened to reveal a smaller gold egg. The smaller egg, in turn, opened to display a golden chicken and a jeweled replica of the Imperial crown. This special Faberge egg so delighted the Czarina that the Czar promptly ordered the Faberge firm to design eggs to be delivered every Easter. In later years Nicholas II, Alexander's son, continued the custom. Fifty-seven eggs were made in all.

Although the omens and the mystery of the egg have disappeared today, the symbolism remains, and artists continue in the Old World tradition of adorning eggs.

Ukrainian Eggs are Called Psanky

The Ukrainians call their eggs pysanky, from the Ukrainian word pysaty which means to write. Originally, these intricately decorated eggs were associated with the mythical or spiritual  beliefs of pagan times, but with the coming of Christianity, they took on a new meaning of rebirth. They were brought to church Easter services in baskets, along with other delicacies for blessings and afterwards, they were exchanged with family and friends with the customary greeting, "Christ is Risen."

An assortment of
intricately engraved and etched
Ukrainian pysanky eggs
courtesy of Wikipedia photos

These eggs usually take several days to several weeks to create, depending on the intricacy of the patterns which may include ribbons or belts (the endless line of eternity), fish, which have stood as symbols of Christianity since its inception, the Sun, which symbolizes good fortune and leaves or flowers, which mean life or growth. Some decorators include grapevines, which are understood to mean good fruits of the Christian life, pine needles, that symbolize youth and health, wheat, which means wealth and prosperity and rams horns, which stand for strength and fertility.

The Eastern and Russian churches celebrate Easter on a different date because of the difference in calendars. In the sixteenth century, the West accepted the new Gregorian calendar, while Eastern and Russian churches kept the Julian calendar.
 
Whenever or whatever you celebrate, have a glorious and beautiful holiday.