| OCR Text |
Show i Crib Traditional Christmas I I Mark in Southern Europe ?! J" 'Y-V--SVr'.r-'Y.VC-Y-( r X HC- KT rV-V-v' VLv' y- V-v' Vv" l-v'Vv' VN gj smi I'" wat ,fT","S'."V.--S mnjn ., ."'4'. 'Mi.'muv.v j .I'vij'. 'i i'.'swi.."y-?r y Ul f. - - , ... . f s V' k :, i"-' - - . I'- J----'mM". " K ' X I t V , , m 1 F.' -I i " i v r i The Christmas Crib is as traditionally a part of Christmas In southern Europe as is the Christmas tree in the northern countries. In France, it is the Creche or Cradle; in Italy, the Praesepe or Manger; in Germany, Krippe or Crib; in Czechoslovakia, Jeslicky; and in Spain, the Nacimiento or Nativity Scene. From the earliest years of Christianity priests and religious, religi-ous, leaders interpreted the Bible by literal representation of plays, tableaux, etc., because of the lack of books and widespread wide-spread inability to read. However, the first Crib was set up in 1223 by St. Francis Assisi. St. Francis received special permission per-mission from the Pope to erect his 'Praesepe" in the village of Grec-:io, Grec-:io, near Assisi. This first Crib was in immediate sensation. Set up in t stable, it was complete with live tnimals, etc. Greccio became fa-nous fa-nous for its Crib and miraculous :ures were attributed to the proven-ler proven-ler of the animals. One of the most famous Cribs in he world was built by the Capuchin nonks, the shrine of the Madonna ielle Grazie, situated in a grotto md surrounded by galleries of Sar-iinian Sar-iinian cork giving a. mountainous iffect Wooden figures, carved by he noted artists Gaggini and Ma-agliani, Ma-agliani, were arranged to move in procession to the Manger. Other :elebrated Cribs include the one at aserta, Italy, where the most fa- t mous Bambino in the world is annually an-nually laid in the Manger amid traditional tra-ditional pomp and solemnity, and the Krippe at Oberammergau, where the figure of the Christ-Child has been a possession of the Lange family fam-ily for many generations. During the Renaissance the presentation pre-sentation of the Crib became increasingly in-creasingly elaborate. The figures were more realistic and richly dressed, the devotional shrines and processions becoming highly ornate pageants. Later, Naples was famed as the city of Cribs. Every church had its "Praesepe" and families erected evergreen shrines on the flat rooftops roof-tops of their dwellings, the background back-ground being dominated by Vesuvius Vesu-vius and the beautiful starlit Neo-politan Neo-politan sky. |
