Easter Through A Small Slice of the Ages
Eoster probably has nothing to do with Easter, and the first clue that she doesn’t is that people claim her day is celebrated with rabbits.
The March Hare didn’t make an appearance in Europe until the 1500's, and then only in some parts of Germany. You had to make a nest to earn a reward from this bunny too.
What am I saying? I’m saying that just because we modern Americans tend to celebrate Easter by hiding colored eggs, eating jellybeans and peeps until we are sick, and talking about Easter Bunnies, doesn’t mean that anyone else did.
(Fear not, in my last story, Brynhild’s pet bunny, Ursula, gets her very own flower crown on Easter. She’s not the March Hare: she was born 300 years too early for that. She does get to eat the flower chain, though, which is all she cares about.)
Eggs
Eggs, however, have long been associated with the season. The first mention was very early. These were dyed red, and to this day, Eastern Orthodox folks prefer their eggs that color.
An early recorded use of them in a big way is from the expense accounts of Edward I in 1290. He apparently had 450 of the things wrapped in gold leaf to give away to his buddies at court.
Edward was being a bit of skinflint, honestly. Simon and Eleanor de Montfort bought 3700 eggs for their celebration in 1276. Other nobles made similar outlays for colored eggs and gave them away as gifts.
Surrounding Holidays
I am writing this today because it is Good Friday for some folks. That is the thing about Easter: while we make a much bigger deal about Christmas these days, the really important Christian holiday is Easter.
As a consequence, the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages made a whole deal about it. Lent, a time of fasting (when you couldn’t eat eggs, by the way, which led to creative chefs making pretend eggs out of almonds or roe) led up to Good Friday. This was preceded by Ash Wednesday and Good Saturday, which only then led to Easter Mass. (They weren’t super creative in their naming.)
Maunday Monday or/and (possibly) Hock Tuesday extended the Easter festivities into the next week, with young women capturing young men and releasing them when they youths donated money to the church. On one of these days it was the other way around, but historians debate which was which.
The only part a modern person would really recognize would be Sunrise Mass on Easter morning, and even then, there may be some changes in tradition.
Conclusions
To be brief, there are many ways to celebrate the season, and we change how we do it with changing technology and social conventions. When you spot a story about a holiday tradition going back centuries, be skeptical.
And you can be creative with how you depict your Easter celebration. There are many party plans to choose from.
And Happy Easter.
You can find me at HOME | vyongewawrites.
Sources:
Rabbit Magic, Legends, and Folklore (learnreligions.com)
A hunt for medieval Easter eggs — Medieval manuscripts blog
Medieval Easter Traditions | The Æthelmearc Gazette (aethelmearcgazette.com)