In 2023, the Christmas Nativity scene turns 800 years old following the first arrangement of the scene by St. Francis of Assisi in 1223.
According to WHYY News, Assisi’s manger scene included live animals inside a cave in the town of Greccio, Italy, where he told the villagers about the birth of Christ.
Following its inception at the time, there have been countless interpretations of the Nativity scene. For instance, the Glencairn Museum in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, hosts an annual exhibition of nativities collected from across the globe, featuring almost 50 scenes representing dozens of countries, including Kenya, Nicaragua, Ukraine, and Italy.
While the nativity scene typically consists of a father, mother, and child, the arrangement has multiple variations. For example, one Nativity scene from Louisiana features alligators rather than livestock, and one of the wise men is shown playing a saxophone.
Director Brian Henderson told the outlet this year is special since the exhibition marks the Glencairn Museum’s reopening. Its castle-like building had been closed for 18 months due to infrastructure renovations.
“It…
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