Archaeologists excavating at ancient sites often refer to the different layers of a city, as each generation builds on top of the rubble of the previous. "Troy 6" is the layer where, presumably, the Trojan horse was delivered. Author Stewart Brand speaks of "fashions," that sometimes transcend their era to become "Culture." As I think of our Christmas traditions, this description seems apt.
It occurs to me that we really celebrate seven different "layers" of Christmas in the United States. Here, then, is my attempt at some cultural archaeology, to uncover the cultural layer-cake, starting from the top down.
Retail Christmas. This is the top layer. It's ephemeral, a bit like a tent city. This year's latest trends, this year's holiday advertisements. You could call it the "Cabbage Patch Christmas," or the "Playstation Christmas." Or the "Macy's Tree Advertisement, you know, the one with the tiny tree and the pile of presents" Christmas.
The Burl Ives Christmas. In this layer, we find cartoons and claymations that are perennial favorites. "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," "A Charlie Brown Christmas." They added a few new songs to our repertoire, but many of the voices are actually ghosts from the previous layer...
The Bing Crosby Christmas. In this layer, we find all sorts of influences from the pre- and post-war period. These are the "standards" of media culture. Spanning from AD 1939 to perhaps AD 1955, these are the movies and songs that tell us what Christmas is "supposed to" look like, sound like, be like. "It's a Wonderful Life," "White Christmas," Bing Crosby, Andy Williams, Mahalia Jackson, Johnny Mathis, Gene Autry.
The Victorian Christmas. Thanks to Charles Dickens and his Scrooge, and Clement Moore's enchanting description of Santa, the culture of Victorian England, as a whole, is part of our Christmas culture. Carolers in top hats and scarves, ornate decorations, and "bah humbug." In addition to crafting our picture of Santa Claus, Moore's poem added reindeer and sleigh to our Christmas lexicon.
The Medieval Christmas. We have these folks to thank for the Christmas Tree, the "twelve days" of Christmas, and "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel."
The Roman Christmas. Decking the halls, giving gifts, and the very date of Christmas come from Roman culture. Even if December 25 was Jesus' actual birthday (there are historical arguments for and against this) the celebration of Christ's birth was, regardless, merged with existing pagan holidays.
The First Christmas. This is where it all began...a feeding trough in the stable, where a Jewish baby, believed to be the Messiah, the Son of God, was born. This is the "reason for the season." And, as a footnoote, our tradition picked up stars and angels.
Now, you may want to argue about how to properly classify the subject matter, as archaeologists sometimes do. You might contend that I have omitted the "Red Rider BB Gun" layer, or the "Firestone Christmas Records" layer, or the "Martha Stewart" layer. And let's not forget the "Christmas Vacation" layer (though it was really more of a stand-alone piece).
But my question to the reader is this: in your home, with your family and friends, which layers of Christmas do you treasure?