Christmas Past 2011

400 Years Of Seasonal Traditions In English Homes

Tuesday 29 November 2011 – Sunday 8 January 2012

Christmas Past: A living room in 1965 (c) Geffrye Museum / photography Steve Speller

The Geffrye’s annual Christmas Past exhibition offers visitors a fascinating insight into how Christmas has been celebrated in English middle-class homes from 1600 to the present day. Each year, authentic festive decorations transform the museum’s eleven period rooms, creating a vivid and evocative picture of how earlier generations celebrated Christmas. Visitors can explore the origins of some of the rich and colourful traditions of Christmases past, from feasting, dancing and kissing under the mistletoe to playing parlour games, hanging up stockings, sending cards, decorating the tree and throwing cocktail parties.

Throughout the exhibition, festive food will be served in the restaurant and visitors can hunt for original gifts, decorations, cards and books in the shop. 

Related Events

All ages

Open Evening: Find Your Festive Spirit

Enjoy Christmas Past by candlelight, listen to a seasonal gallery talk, sing along to live festive music or bring children to a decoration-making workshop. Come and get merry!

Thursday 8 December, 5.00 – 8.00pm. Admission free.

Family Day

A lively day of Christmas decoration workshops for children aged 3 and over, with carol singing for all ages.

Saturday 3 December. Workshops run from 10.30am – 12.30pm and 2.00 – 4.00pm.

Carol singing will take place at 1.00pm and 2.00pm. 

Farewell to Christmas

The Geffrye’s traditional burning of the holly and the ivy, celebrated with carol singing, stories about Epiphany and a taste of mulled wine and Twelfth Night cake. Please note that this event takes place in the garden, so wrap up warm! 

Friday 6 January 2012, 4.00 – 5.00pm. Admission free.

Adults

Concert by Candlelight

Acclaimed group Bocca Aperta returns to the Geffrye with a moving recital of a capella Christmas music under the Christmas tree in the reading room.

Thursday 15 December. Concert begins at 8.00pm, museum opens at 7.30pm.

Tickets £14.50 in advance (includes a glass of sherry or port and a mince pie)  

All That Glitters Christmas Decorations Workshop

Create a unique range of glitzy Christmas decorations using a variety of different techniques.

Saturday 3 December, 10.30-400pm. Tickets £30 (includes all materials)

Christmas Greenery Workshop

Make festive arrangements with fresh greens and a mixture of scented, natural ornaments.

Saturday 10 December, 1.30 – 4.30pm. Tickets £30 (includes short talk, workshop and all materials)

Exhibition Talk: Christmas Past in Focus

Explore Christmas traditions with this informal gallery talk.

Saturday 10 December, 11.30am and repeated at 3.00pm. Admission Free.

Notes to Editors

1.  For further details or images, or to arrange an interview with the exhibition curator, please contact Nancy Loader, Press Officer, at press@geffrye-museum.org.uk or on 020 7739 9893.

2.  The Christmas Past exhibition has been mounted at the Geffrye for over 20 years, and on-going, original research into the history of Christmas adds a new dimension to the displays each year. A well-illustrated book, Christmas Past, Christmas Present, has been written to tell the history of Christmas in English homes and is available in the museum's shop.

3.  The Geffrye explores the home from 1600 to the present day, focusing on the living rooms of the urban middle classes in England, particularly London. A chronological series of period rooms show how such homes have been used and furnished over this period, reflecting changes in society and patterns of behaviour as well as style, fashion and taste.

4.  Admission: FREE

Address: 136 Kingsland Road, Shoreditch, London E2.

Tel: 020 7739 9893

Email: info@geffrye-museum.org.uk

Web: www.geffrye-museum.org.uk

Travel: London Overground: Hoxton station (directly behind the museum)

Tube:  Liverpool Street station, then bus 149 or 242 from Bishopsgate

Old Street station (exit 2), then bus 243 or 15 minute walk

Buses: 67, 149, 242, 243, 394

Open: Tue–Sat, 10am-5pm, Sun & Bank Hol Mon, 12noon–5pm

Closed: Mons (except Bank Hols), 24, 25, 26 Dec 2011 and 1 Jan 2012

Please check Christmas opening hours prior to visiting

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