The History Of The German Nutcracker

Today we want to uncover some real facts about the history of the german nutcrackers. This is why this article is called:

The History Of The Nutcracker

Now, let's cut to the chase.

How old the first nutcracker is and how he looked like is unknown. But archaeological excavations prove that nuts have belonged to the food of humans from the first day on.

First the humans tried to crack the nuts with their teeth or stones. This wasn't comfortable and so the nutcrackers were invented as a kind of ancillary equipment.

When we are talking about these old nutcrackers we only talk about the helpful instruments and not about the figures. The traditional figures were carved in many regions. But the nutcrackers of the Ore Mountains have become to the most popular ones and they are the favourites of the most people all around the world.

The nutcracker figures did not appear in the Ore Mountains before the middle of the 19th century. There are no signs for their existence before that time, because things like patterns or originals are missing.

When the mining had stopped, the inhabitants of the Ore Mountains had to search for a new field of income. This was a really big problem because before that they all were able to live from the resources (Minerals for example) they digged out of the Ore Mountains.

Some of the people back then recognized that there was a lot of wood in all of the villages and towns. They finally understood that they were not dependable on the mining anymore... they now were able to get into the "wood industry". This is why the citizens decided to concentrade on carving and the wood handwork.

The original type of the "Ore Mountain" nutcracker was created in the workshop of family Fuechtner approximately around 1865.

The Seiffner carver William Friedrich Fuechtner copied the nutcracker from the story "The Nutcracker King" of Heinrich Hoffmann.

The health resort Seiffen is very popular in Germany for the production of original wooden handwork. Until today the family Fuechtner works in the 7th generation in the production of nutcrackers.

The Fuechtner king can be called the prototype of the Ore Mountain nutcrackers. They are characterised by their clear basic form and their uniform has the colour red and yellow or blue and orange. The head coverage of the king corresponds to the hat of the miners, which becomes by up-painted golden prongs the king crown.

In the 20th century nutcrackers became a popular toy for children and are great presents for Christmas. In Germany the cute little men aren't allowed to miss in any living room in Christmas time. During Christmas Nutcrackers can be seen in Germany just everywhere.

Did we make you a little curious about the first nutcracker - the king? Then please take a look at the link below. There you can see how the uniform of the king looks like.