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The Provence Christmas Story a Tale of the Santons

Explore · Margo Lestz · Provencal History & Traditions

You may know the traditional Biblical Christmas story, but in Provence, there is a bit more to it. The Provence Christmas story is told in a Nativity play called a pastorale. It incorporates the main details of the traditional Nativity but sets it in a nineteenth-century Provençal village.

…Continue reading here to learn about the importance of the shepherd’s song in Provençal Christmas traditions. Margo explains the characters in a typical creche scene, these tiny clay figures are called santons (little saints). In some villages and churches during the holidays, these nativity scenes begin to look like real small towns with figures that include bakers, millers, shepherds and many more.

 

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Explore · Maison Mirabeau Wines · Provencal History & Traditions · What's On Provence & Cote d'Azur

What is the History Behind the Santons of Provence

November 27, 2017
Contributor blog post by Mirabeau Wine: Sir Francis of Assisi established the tradition of nativity scenes in 1223 with live enactments by people and animals during the midnight mass on Christmas eve in his church of Greccio, Italy. The tradition halted after the French Revolution, when many churches were closed. In 1803 the Santons of …
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Margo Lestz

Margo is a British/American who has lived in Nice, France for the past nine years. She loves digging into the history of an area and discovering the tales behind local customs and traditions. She blogs about her discoveries on The Curious Rambler . She is also the author of two books, French Holidays & Traditions, and Curious Histories of Nice, France. Click here for Margo's books.

She describes herself as a perpetual student and is always taking some kind of course or researching a moment in history that has caught her fancy. She’s curious by nature and always wondering who, what, why, when, where, and how.

Margo shares her adventures (and her questions) with Jeff, her husband of many years. She enjoys travel, history, observing cultures and traditions – and then writing about them, of course.

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Perfectly Provence...is an essential online resource, a digital magazine for locals and visitors alike, with content collected from the region’s top regional writers. Focused exclusively on Provence, Perfectly Provence includes targeted regional content for both tourists and for those who have chosen the area for their permanent home. About Perfectly Provence

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