Some flowerpot robins from The Bright Surprise for Little Eyes, published in London by the Sunday School Union, 1884.
We are so used to associating robins with Christmas that I doubt we ever give much thought as to why this is. As with all such questions there are many answers. However, one thing we do know is that the Victorian postman’s uniform was bright red (up until 1861) and that postmen were nicknamed “Robins” because of their red attire.
Given that, as mentioned in our Thirteenth Day of Advent post, Christmas cards took off in the early 1840s, following the introduction of the Penny Post, it’s easy to see how an association was formed in the popular imagination between postmen “Robins” and Christmas. Add to this that many Victorian illustrators started depicting an actual robin as postman, delivering your Christmas card in its beak, and we can understand how the link was forged.
#victorianchildrensbooks #victorianchristmas #adventcalendar #victorianpicturebooks #advent #childrenspicturebooks #victorianillustration #victorianillustrators #robins