Have you ever heard of a smoker – or in its diminutive form, the smoker? The “smoker man” is a wooden figure that serves as an incense burner. It is just one of the many traditional Christmas decorations from the Erzgebirge, a Saxon border region known for folk art in the form of wooden angels, Christmas pyramids and candle arches.
But the fact that no one has ever found a proper English translation for the Little Smoking Man suggests that he is not yet one of the region’s famous international exports – unlike his immediate relative, another wooden figure traditionally found in the Ore Mountains: the Nutcracker.
Not nearly as famous as the nutcracker: the traditional smoker. Image: picture Alliance/dpa/P. Pleul
A German-French-Russian-American story
The Nutcracker gained international recognition thanks to its diverse cultural depictions and the fact that authors from different countries borrowed from the original story. When the German romantic ETA Hoffmann wrote a first version of the story of the little toy character entitled “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” in 1816, there were still no international copyright agreements.
It was adapted in 1844 by the French writer Alexandre Dumas. The plot of “Histoire d’un casse-noisette” (simply called “The Nutcracker” in English) was almost identical – but the French version was nowhere near as dark as the German one.
In any case, Dumas’ adaptation served as the basis for the 1892 Russian ballet, choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, with music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
The first full performance of the ballet did not reach England until 1934 and was performed for the first time in the United States at Christmas 1944 by the San Francisco Ballet Company.
It was such a success there that it has been performed during the holiday season ever since. With hundreds of performances each year, the ballet is now a staple Christmas ritual for thousands of families across the United States – and around the world.
From Saxony to the world
Friedrich Wilhelm Füchtner, the Erzgebirge carver who invented the first “mass-produced” model of a nutcracker in 1870, apparently had no idea that the figure would one day become the star of an international ballet classic. When he created his character, he actually had a different version of the story in mind, one written in 1851 by The Struwwelpeter creator Heinrich Hoffmann.
An illustration from Heinrich Hoffmann’s “King Nutcracker or Poor Reinhold’s Dream” from 1851Image: picture-alliance/akg-images
It was only much later that the German figure found its way into households around the world. After the Second World War, the Erzgebirge wood carving company Steinbach had to relocate to Hanover, where many American soldiers were stationed nearby. The soldiers began to bring nutcracker dolls back from Germany as typical souvenirs for their families.
Another reason to visit the Ore Mountains
The collectible figures continue to attract visitors to the East German region, which is known for its wooden folk art.
In addition to the various workshops in the area, the Nutcracker Museum in Neuhausen, the “first nutcracker museum in Europe”, is also a recommended stop. Not only does it hold the record for the largest nutcracker collection in the world; In addition to the exhibition, various events take place throughout the year, such as an annual nutcracker collectors’ conference.
The story has been renewed several times over the years, including in Disney’s 2018 version “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms.” Image: picture-alliance/Everett Collection/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
When asked why the Nutcracker was so closely associated with Christmas, museum owner Uwe Löschner provided a factual explanation typical of the pragmatism of the people in the region: “During the Christmas season, poor people used their nuts if they wanted to and baked their traditional ones Stollen (fruit bread) and cookies; and nutcrackers were used to crack these nuts,” he told DW.
The nutcracker is more than just a good-looking tool. Its symbolism continues to be shared across generations and countries thanks to the fairy tale that contributed to its international fame – a universal story of hope and the triumph of good over evil.
This article was first published in 2021.
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2023-12-23 11:59:43
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