Greece

Two more paper Nativities. These two are from Greece.

(L09.B.R5.)
 

USA, Arizona

My sweet grandkids. This Nativity is made by gluing photos to acrylic and then laser cutting out the shapes to absolute perfection. I had this set made for Samuel as a Christmas gift. The story that follows is the reason: Samuel and I had moved from our big property in Tempe to a much smaller condo in Chandler. We had plans to not have so much work. The large property was expensive, and I think I was a little tired of keeping it looking pristine or at least up to my standards. About a year after we moved, Samuel's father had a stroke. It was a very bad one, and Samuel's mother really needed added support from him, so we offered to move her and Jack to an apartment closer to us. The apartment was about a mile away from us. Well, Samuel helped like that for several months, and we realized that we really needed to be closer, so we placed our condo for sale and moved to an apartment in the same complex so that Samuel would be closer and more available. At that point all of our personal decorations were in storage, and we had no decorations for Christmas, so I came up with this idea. It took me a month to create, and I chose to make the creche out of a moving box. It is really the perfect representation of what we were all going through. In spite of all the sacrifices, we were surrounded by family and surviving nicely. All of our grandkids are featured except the one that was not born yet. 

 

Germany

 

The paper pop-up Nativity is from West Germany and was printed in 1962.

(L09.B.R02.)

Czech Republic

 

Though this paper Nativity does not have a date on it, it appears to be printed in the late 60's. I have several of these sets, and that is when they were popular. This one was printed in Czechoslovakia, now known as The Czech Republic. These sets are so sweet. They present as a large card, and when the card is opened, a large and very detailed scene pops up.

(L09.B.R02.)

Australia, Christmas Island

Postage stamps from Christmas Island. Christmas Island is a territory of Australia.

(L09.B.R.)

Cook Island

Stamps from the Cook Islands. The Cook Islands is a nation in the South Pacific with political links to New Zealand. Its 15 islands are scattered over a vast area. The largest island, Rarotonga, is home to rugged mountains and Avarua, the national capital. Side-note: my uncle, Carl Ollerton, served a 3 year mission to the Cook Islands in 1955 returning home in 1958. 

USA, Arizona

This beautiful paper cutting was done by a woman that contacted me about the Nativity display. She was from Mesa, Arizona and was familiar with the display at the VC. She asked if I would be interested in displaying one of her paper cuttings. I said that I would, and this is what she sent me. In the end, she offered it to me to keep. The technique of cutting paper is German and is called Scherenschnette. I am very grateful for the beauty and talents of others around me. By Debbie Greenley

(L04.B999.R001)