Easter Basket History
It’s hard to imagine Easter without Easter baskets. Traditionally, these are filled with candy treats such as chocolates and jelly beans, usually in the shape of an egg. There may also be hollow plastic eggs with coins or other treats inside. But did you ever wonder where the whole idea of baskets on Easter came from in the first place?
Like the Easter holiday itself, the basket is the result of the confluence of several traditions from different cultures. Some of these stem from the Judeo-Christian tradition; others date back to pagan customs.
In ancient Europe, the vernal or spring equinox was a significant time. In the original home of the Indo-Aryan peoples – ancestors of most of the ethnic and linguistic groups of Europe as well as Armenia, Kurdistan, Iran, Afghanistan and India – winters were long and bitter. Spring was considered a time of renewal and rebirth.
Among Semitic-speaking peoples of the ancient Middle East – who include the Hebrews, Arabs, Babylonians, Assyrians and others – it was a tradition to bring the first seedlings of the growing season to the temples in order to insure a successful harvest. This connection to agriculture is also reflected in the holiday’s relationship to the cycles of the moon; it is always held on the Sunday (day of Sol Invictus, or the “Unconquerable Sun”) following the first full moon after the spring equinox. To early farmers, the phase of the moon was always significant in determining when to plant seeds.
The tradition of
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