CELEBRATED ON 08 DECEMBER - HANOUCCA
Hanukkah marks an important military victory of the Maccabees and symbolises the spiritual resistance of Judaism to Greek assimilation.
The practices and customs associated with it are linked to the miracle of the vial of oil, in particular the lighting of the nine-branched Hanukkah candlestick during the eight days of the festival and the consumption of sweets made from olive oil. Four-sided spinning tops are also played.
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTMAS JUMPER DAY
The origin of this craze seems to date back to the 1980s, when this type of jumper was worn by Bill Cosby on The Cosby Show. Meanwhile, in the UK, it was popularised by novelist Gyles Brandreth and singer Andy Williams.
After an eclipse in the 1990s, the «Christmas jumper» made a comeback in 2001, when Colin Firth, in the film Bridget Jones's Diary, wore a greenish turtleneck decorated with a reindeer. Since the 2010s, ugly jumper parties have been a big success in the United States, particularly in New York. In American Jewish circles, this garment is known as a Hanukkah sweater, as Hanukkah falls at the same time of year.
Le Monde sees this fashion as a «hijacked tradition», reminiscent of the jumpers that grandmothers used to knit for their grandchildren as Christmas presents.
CELEBRATED ON 25 DECEMBER - CHRISTMAS
Christmas is celebrated on the night of 24-25 December and all day on the 25th. As a Christian festival, it commemorates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth every year. Originally, there were pagan festivities on this date to mark the winter solstice, symbolising the rebirth of the sun. The Armenian Apostolic Church has kept the more ancient tradition of celebrating the two feasts of the Nativity and Epiphany on 6 January.
In the 21st century, the Christmas period is largely non-religious and commercial, and in some countries Christmas Day is a public holiday. In this spirit, Christmas has become a festival with folkloric connotations, characterised by family units gathering around a meal and exchanging gifts around the traditional Christmas tree.
A MUST-SEE: CHRISTMAS COTS
BONNIEUX A TYPICAL COT FROM 19TH CENTURY PROVENCE
This superb cot is made from natural materials (dry stone and plants from the Luberon), with buildings that Vincent himself has painstakingly crafted himself (chapel, oratory, mill, bread oven, henhouse, Provencal farmhouse, etc.). Discover the village life of yesteryear and its inhabitants - over 500 santons.
It took him six weeks, «with days of more than ten hours» work«, to achieve the desired result and build a cot more than 15 metres long. »I'm trying to represent traditional life at the end of the 19th century. It's true that I've separated the nativity scene from the folklore decor«, explains Vincent Gils. "It's an open cot.
Perspective is respected, nothing is placed at random and Vincent has an eye for detail.
SAINT SATURNIN LES AVIGNON
The santons in the church cot have been purchased over the years thanks to the generosity of visitors.
The 23 old santons are either in wax for the Holy Family or in papier-mâché for the others, and probably date from the 1st half of the 19th century. The 17 large santons, the most recent, were made by the Carmelites of Avignon and are in wax. They range in size from 40 to 70 cm. The ensemble is completed by around forty more recent santons, ranging in size from 15 to 30 cm.
In all, there are more than 185 figures, including 81 characters and over a hundred animals. 40 of these figures are animated.
6 pumps circulate the water in the river and fountains, and 42 motors power the movement of the subjects, which operate on 12 or 220 volts.
An automated lighting system creates day and night. A black light gives a special effect to the whole.
The 52m2 cot requires almost 200 hours of work each year, not including the creation of new items. 15 boxes of foam are needed.