The history of the New Year's toy in Russia. The history of the New Year's toy for children

New Year is a long-awaited holiday for many, invariably, year after year, pleasing us with gifts, good mood and fresh prospects. Both adults and children love this solemn, filled with light notes of magic and fairy-tale event and begin preparations for it long before its onset.

On the shelves of shops there are bright New Year's toys, silvery tinsel and garland. And in each house and in many institutions they hurry to install a smart Christmas tree.

All these holiday attributes have long become familiar to us. And few people think about what the history of the New Year's toys and why there was a tradition to install and decorate the festive tree.

To the origins: the custom to decorate a Christmas tree

There are many legends about why an evergreen tree has become an indispensable attribute of the winter's favorite holiday.

The modern tendency to decorate a New Year tree with various objects is directly connected with religious traditions.

However, the history of the New Year's toy and the decoration of the evergreen tree has a long history, originating long before the emergence of Christianity. This tradition originated in the territory of modern Europe.

Germanic pagan tribes piously believed in the existence of evil spirits. Particular strength of these entities acquired cold winter evenings. And in order to appease the spirits, the Germans went to the forest to decorate the fir trees on which the evil forces supposedly lived. Fruits and various sweets with which the tree was hung, and became the prototype of modern Christmas decorations. This is the story of the birth of the New Year's toy.

Subsequently, the tradition was transferred to the Christian religion, but it had a completely different context.

Tradition of the New Year tree in Russia

The history of the New Year's toy in Russia began in 1700, when the Great Reformer and pioneer Peter the Great brought a custom from Europe to decorate the Christmas tree. In each house or yard in the winter period there should now be a coniferous tree.

"On the big streets, at the deliberate houses, before the gate put some jewelry from the branches and branches of pine, spruce and juniper," read the decree signed by the hand of the first All-Russian emperor.

Gradually the tradition has taken root, and the history of the New Year's toy in Russia has already developed.

Where did the glass toy come from?

If we talk about modern Christmas toys, the history of their appearance begins in Germany.

Even before the beginning of the 1800s, nuts, fruits, sweets, and cookies were used as decorations. The history of Christmas toys was in its infancy.

To make glass Christmas-tree toys began in the small German town of Lauscha. Here was located an old glass-blowing plant, where glasses, glasses, vases, beads and other household utensils were made.

In 1848, the first glass ball was made - a prototype of a modern Christmas tree toy. And later, in 1867, a modern gas plant was opened in Lausch. With the help of gas, glass blowers could blow balls with brittle, thin walls.

Thus, the story of the creation of a New Year's toy made of glass - the most popular Christmas tree decoration - began.

On the territory of our country, holiday decorations began to be manufactured on an industrial scale only during the First World War. Klin factory "Yelochka" released the first balls, which later could be found in almost every house.

Pre-revolutionary toy

Fashion for Christmas decorations in Russia appeared in the 19th century under Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. It is with her name that the history of the birth of the New Year's toy in our country is connected. She first dressed up the Christmas tree with bright decorations made especially for this purpose, as was done in Europe.

Glass toys were available at that time only to wealthy citizens. Ordinary people decorated the tree with improvised means - nuts, hand-made articles made of wood.

In pre-revolutionary Russia, there were also New Year's toys made of heavy paper - the so-called Dresden cardboard. They were three-dimensional products, glued together from two halves of painted cardboard.

For decoration, toys made of cotton wool were also used: figurines of angels, children, sailors - with a metal frame inside.

Glass and porcelain balls were imported at that time to Russia mainly from Germany. They were unlike modern ones - they were made of thick glass and weighed much more usual ornaments for us.

Soviet Christmas tree toy

In many houses in boxes with Christmas decorations you can find products of Soviet manufacture. The most popular variants of this period were colorful icicles, plastic and glass vegetables and fruits, corn cobs as a relic of the Khrushchev era.

The history of the New Year's toy in the Soviet period is closely connected with the ideology of that time. Ornaments of this period with portraits of leaders of thematic orientation are valued at antique dealers no less than balls, whose age is more than a hundred years.

After the revolution, and for a long time to decorate the Christmas tree was banned. It was considered a tribute to Western traditions, religiosity and was strictly forbidden.

The production of Christmas-tree toys on an industrial scale began after 1935, when the New Year tree was officially returned to the homes of citizens of the Soviet Union as a festive accessory by the decree of the Presidium.

Nothing could create such a festive, magical atmosphere, like a furry Christmas tree, decorated with multicolored iridescent toys. The first Soviet New Year's celebration took place in 1937 in the House of Unions.

Often at this time as jewelry used homemade toys made of paper, cardboard, papier-mache.

However, already in the late 1930s and early 1940s, their industrial production began to develop and even in the difficult years of the Second World War did not stop. We made New Year's toys from various wastes: wire, medical bandages, cotton wool.

With the coming to power of Khrushchev during the thaw in Christmas decorations, much less propaganda became. But now toys of agricultural and household subjects are beginning to be produced. On New Year's trees you can see carrots, cucumbers, corn cobs, samovars and felt boots. In this period began to be made, became popular tree toys - icicles.

The history of the New Year's toy for children in the Soviet period developed very actively. At this time, many decorations were issued in the form of heroes of fairy tales: Humpbacked horses, Red hats, unseen little animals and tiershkas adorned the New Year tree in almost every Soviet house.

Post-Soviet Christmas tree toy

After the collapse of the USSR, the history of the New Year's toy gained a new round of its development. Imported goods began to displace domestic products from the market. Now more often on Christmas trees you could see colored balls and cones of foreign origin.

Glass toys began to lose their relevance due to the high price. They were replaced by more practical and cheap products made of plastic and acrylic.

In the 1990's, themed toys of domestic production became significantly smaller. There was a fashion for horoscopes, and quite often in shops it was possible to meet ornaments with labels-images of animals, symbols of coming year.

In the early 2000s, the fashion for minimalism comes, and more often in Christmas toys, European ascetic tendencies are seen.

Today, as such, there is no fashion for New Year's accessories. When decorating a Christmas tree in most cases guided primarily by the general stylistics in the interior, as well as their own taste preferences.

Interesting facts about the New Year's toys

• During the First World War, it was forbidden to establish a New Year tree: the tradition was associated with German culture; Therefore, taking into account the political situation in the country and in the world as a whole, the custom to establish a Christmas tree for a time has lost its relevance.
• It is curious that with the advent of the Soviet government, during the general reformation in Russia it was undesirable to establish a New Year tree at home and dress it up with toys; This attribute was considered a "religious remnant", which did not fit into the general concept of building a communist system free of Christian dogmas in the country.
• The history of the birth of the New Year's toy for children is invariably connected with fairy-tale characters: the heroes of Pushkin's children's works were embodied in the images of New Year's toys as early as the beginning of the 19th century.

Popular design options for New Year trees

One of the most popular options for decorating Christmas trees is the decoration of toys in combination of two colors: blue and silver, red and gold, white and blue. For such variants, single-colored balls are used. You can use toys in the form of bows or candles.

However, the single-color design options gradually go to the background, being replaced by bright colored ornaments. The fashion includes eclectic, combining different styles and textures.

The rain and tinsel, popular in the Soviet and post-Soviet period, today have lost their relevance. A common option is decorating the tree with beads and balls in one style.

One of the most relevant modern trends are New Year toys made by themselves. In modern trends - decoration of the New Year tree with various sweets: cookies in bright glaze, gingerbread.

Fans of warm and cozy notes in designer interior solutions will appreciate toys made of felt.

What are the New Year toys talking about?

Modern toys are very diverse and often bear no semantic load. A huge selection of shapes and colors pleases the eye and makes it possible to compose a bright composition.

However, initially each toy carried an image, one way or another associated with Christianity.

New Year's toys symbolize:

• Candles - spiritual light, Christ's sacrifice;
• Balls - Adam's apple;
• Vegetables and fruits - fertility in the coming year;
• Bell - guardian, protecting from dark forces and misfortunes;
• Figured gingerbread and cookies - unleavened bread, used with the sacrament;
• The star on the top of the tree is the Bethlehem star, which indicated to the magi the way to the newborn Jesus.

Collectible copies

Today, Christmas decorations are not only accessories that are used to decorate a New Year tree. Some toys are exclusive and made in a single copy.

These decorations are worth a lot of money and are the object of envy and lust for many collectors.

Toys of fine transparent glass, painted by hand, are considered valuable. They look very refined and elegant and fit not only for decorating the New Year tree, but also as a festive interior decor.

More and more popular is the tradition of presenting expensive Christmas tree decorations as a gift for the New Year. Such toys will decorate any tree and become the indisputable pride of their owner.