Coal and La Befana
What is the origin of the threat of coal-in-your-stocking that is near-universally dreaded by children the world over?Daniel
The threat of coal in your stocking appears to be of Italian origin with the legend of La Befana. The story is told that La Befana lived a life of sadness. Her only child had died.
One evening, while she was busily cleaning her home, two of the Wise Men stopped and asked for directions. She brusquely directed them toward the inns and rejected their invitation to join them, as she had work to do.
Later some shepherds came by and a similar interaction occurred. She returned to sweeping the floor. Then she saw the brilliant star through her window and she realized the error of her way. She hastily gathered toys from her lost child and began to search for the Christ child.
Sadly, she was unable to find the stable with her Savior. To this day, she continues to search for the Christ child. Along her journey, she sweeps floors and leaves gifts of toys for good children and coal for naughty children.
Italian children find a piece of coal candy among their Christmas toys as a reminder that they are not always perfect and are in need of Christ. The idea is that if they had been good all of the time, there would have been an additional toy rather than a lump of coal.
Like many of our Christmas traditions, the story of La Befana has its origins in pagan culture. The Celts would burn wicker puppets to symbolize the end of one year and the beginning of another. The priestess of these ceremonies was a witch woman. This women was transformed into La Befana over time. The coal that she brought was a symbol of fertility connected with sacred bonfires.
I particularly like the hyothesis put forth by Laura, a seamstress and blogger who sells handmade stockings and writes about all things related to Christmas stockings. She proposed that Santa would leave a coal for those who needed to invest more work before they received pleasant gifts, seeing as coal can become diamond with exertion and time. For beautiful stockings and a wealth of information about the history of Christmas stockings, please visit her blog: By the Chimney with Care
Comments
Post a Comment