A nutcracker is a tool designed to open nuts by cracking their shells. There are many designs, including levers, screws, and ratchets. The lever version is also used for cracking lobster and crab shells.
The Ore Mountains lie along the Czech–German border, separating the historical regions of Bohemia in the Czech Republic and Saxony in Germany. The highest peaks are the Klínovec in the Czech Republic at 1,244 metres (4,081 ft) above sea level and the Fichtelberg in Germany at 1,215 metres (3,986 ft).
Freiberg is a university and former mining town in Saxony, Germany, with around 41,000 inhabitants. The city lies in the foreland of the Ore Mountains, in the Saxon urbanization axis, which runs along the northern edge of the Elster and Ore Mountains, stretching from Plauen in the southwest via Zwickau, Chemnitz and Freiberg to Dresden in the northeast. It sits on the Freiberger Mulde, a tributary of the Mulde River. It is a Große Kreisstadt, and the administrative seat of Landkreis Mittelsachsen. Freiberg is connected to Dresden by the S3 line of the Dresden S-Bahn.
The Striezelmarkt in Dresden is one of the first genuine Christmas markets in the world. Founded as a one-day market in 1434, it celebrated its 585th anniversary in 2019. Its 240 stands attract about 3 million visitors from all over the world. The annual market lasts throughout the Advent season until Christmas Eve.
The 140-kilometre-long Silver Road is the first and longest holiday route in the German Free State of Saxony. Against the background of the importance of mining in the history of Saxony, the road links those sights and tourist attractions of the Ore Mountains and its foreland that relate to the centuries-old mining and smelting industries of the region.
Christmas pyramids are Christmas decorations that have their roots in the folklore and customs of the Ore Mountain region of Germany, but which have become popular internationally. They comprise a decorated pyramidal outer frame with candle holders and a central carousel with a rotor at the top which is driven by warm air from the lit candles. The carousel is decorated with nativity scenes and other Christmas figures such as angels and wise men, as well as worldly motifs such as mining folk and forest scenes.
Seiffen is a town in the district of Erzgebirgskreis in the central south of Saxony in Germany.
A Schwibbogen is a decorative candle-holder from the Ore Mountains region of Saxony, Germany. The first metal schwibbogen was made in 1740 in Johanngeorgenstadt. The early candle arches consisted of a single forged piece of black metal which could be painted. The number of candles varies with the size of the arc, the original design holding eleven. In the UK candle arches or candle bridges are marketed, often just consisting of a simple wooden stepped arch with 7 electric candles. These are not strictly schwibbögen.
Neuhausen/Erzgeb. is a municipality in the district of Mittelsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. It consists of Neuhausen proper and the Ortsteile (divisions) Dittersbach, Frauenbach, Heidelbach, Cämmerswalde, Rauschenbach, Neuwernsdorf and Deutschgeorgenthal. Neuhausen hosts the first nutcracker museum in Europe, which houses more than 5,000 examples, the largest collection of nutcrackers in the world and is also known as a location for winter sports.
The Räuchermann, erzgebirgisch Raachermannel is an incense smoker, the invention of toy makers in the Ore Mountains, used to burn down cone incense, known as Räucherkerzchen.
The Ore Mountain Toy Museum in Seiffen is an internationally known museum of Ore Mountain toys and Ore Mountain folk art. It was opened in 1953 in Seiffen. In 1973 it was joined by the Ore Mountains Open-Air Museum, a folk art and local historic museum with 14 houses typical of the Ore Mountains before 1900 on the edge of the toy village.
The history of wooden toymaking in the Ore Mountains is closely bound to regional circumstances. The Ore Mountains are located in Central Europe on the border between Germany and the Czech Republic. For many centuries it was a countryside in which the local population eked out a hard existence from the land. Long and harsh winters restricted agriculture; in addition the region had very poor communications. With the onset of ore mining a new line of commerce developed, but the hard labour and high risks involved meant that it was only work for young and strong men. Many were injured or died as a result of accidents. The miners rose early in the morning whilst it was still dark in order to go to work and did not return home again until late in the evening after dark. From those times comes a custom that has survived to the present day, the practice of placing lights in the window. These lights were intended to show the miners the safe way back to the homes of their families.
Reifendrehen is a unique type of toy manufacture using wood turning techniques that was developed in the Ore Mountains in the vicinity of the town of Seiffen in Germany and continues there to the present day. The process produces small animals and other figures or even little wooden houses in outline, that are used as toys or to decorate Christmas pyramids or Nativity scenes. The animals and figures so produced are an inherent part of Ore Mountain folk art.
The Miners' Parade is a parade traditionally held in places in Austria and Germany where ore was and is smelted. It was and is a public event held by a community or corporation whose employment is linked to mining and smelting. It is usually known in German as a Bergparade, but also as a Berg- und Hüttenparade. It takes place as one of the highlights of a festival. The Miner's Parade is a special form of procession which is organised to march past important dignitaries or which is organized for such high-ranking individuals.
The Glassworks Museum of the Ore Mountains is located in the old socage vault (Fronfeste) of Purschenstein Castle in Neuhausen/Erzgeb. in the German Free State of Saxony.
A miner's figure is a traditional Christmas decoration from the Ore Mountains of central Europe. Miners' figures are turned or carved out of wood, and often bear two candles. They are usually displayed together with an angelic figure, also bearing a candle. This pair is intended to symbolize the relationship between man and woman or the worldly and spiritual aspects of life.
Auguste Müller was a German folk carver, who was involved in Seiffen's traditional wooden toymaking. Her works made from waste wood are now counted among the most valuable pieces of Ore Mountain folk art. She followed in her father's footsteps as a toymaker. Müller was noted for her use of metaphor in her carvings, which she made with a particular sensitivity. The Erzgebirgisches Spielzeugmuseum in Seiffen is in possession of some of her works such as the religious "Weihnachtstempel", which she made in 1918.
Nutcracker dolls, also known as Christmas nutcrackers, are decorative nutcracker figurines most commonly made to resemble a toy soldier. In German tradition, the dolls are symbols of good luck, frightening away malevolent spirits. While nearly all nutcrackers from before the first half of the 20th century are functional, a significant proportion of modern nutcrackers are primarily decorative, and not able to crack nuts.
Emil Schuhmann was a Texas-born accordionist and bandleader who created the Pyramide toy. The elaborate toy, considered Texas folk art, was purchased in 1969 by Ima Hogg, daughter of Texas Gov. Jim Hogg, and put on display at Winedale Historical Complex near Round Top, Texas, where it remains to this day.
Christmas angels are small wooden figures portraying angels often playing an instrument. They can be arranged to an entire orchestra. The origins of artistic angel carving lie in the Ore Mountains where the angels are an integral part of Ore Mountain folk art.
