Historical observances
- A hunt for Medievel Easter eggsEaster eggs are a popular symbol of the springtime holiday, but did you know that the association of eggs and Easter is much older than our modern chocolate varieties?
- White House Easter Egg RollSince 1878, American presidents and their families have celebrated Easter Monday by hosting an 'egg roll' party. Held on the South Lawn, it is one of the oldest annual events in White House history. Some historians note that First Lady Dolley Madison originally suggested the idea of a public egg roll, while others tell stories of informal egg-rolling parties at the White House dating back to President Lincoln's administration. Beginning in the 1870s, Washingtonians from all social levels celebrated Easter Monday on the west grounds of the U.S. Capitol. Children rolled brilliantly dyed hard-boiled eggs down the terraced lawn.
- Faberge Easter EggsEaster is the most joyful celebration of the Orthodox faith in Russia. After the devout church services, families gather to exchange gifts of decorated eggs, symbols of renewed life and hope. The Easter of 1885 also marks the twentieth anniversary of Czar Alexander III and Czarin a Maria Fedorovna, and the Czar needs an exceptional gift for his wife.
So he places an order with a young jeweler, Peter Carl Fabergé, whose beautiful creations have recently caught Maria's eye.
On Easter morning, Fabergé delivers to the palace what appears to be a simple enameled egg. But to the delight of the Empress, inside is a golden yolk; within the yolk is a golden hen; and concealed within the hen is a diamond miniature of the royal crown and a tiny ruby egg – both now lost to history.
His wife's delight is all the Czar needs to reward Fabergé with a commission for an Easter egg every year.
Videos
- The Ten CommandmentsCall Number: DVDISBN: 1415718636Publication Date: 1956To escape the edict that condemed all first-born Hebrew males, Egypt's Pharoah, Rameses I, the infant Moses is set adrift on the Nile in a reed basket. Saved by the pharaoh's daughter Bithiah, he is adopted by her and brought up in the court of her brother, Pharaoh Seti. When his Hebrew heritage is revealed, Moses is cast out of Egypt, and makes his way across the desert where he marries, has a son and is commanded by God to return to Egypt to free the Hebrews from slavery.
- Ben-Hur byCall Number: Library DVD'sISBN: 1419810790Publication Date: 1959Judah Ben-Hur is a young Jewish nobleman from a prominent who is reunited with his childhood friend Messala. Messala returns to Judea as a Roman tribune. There is a genuine friendship between the two men, yet the clash of their cultures drives a wedge between them. That wedge finally drives Messala to banish Judah to the slave galleys and sends his mother and his sister to prison. Fom that point forward, Judah's life becomes a quest: a quest to survive and a quest for vengeance. Judah survives the galleys to become the adopted son of a Roman general, and his triumphant return to Judea permits him to challenge and subsequently confront Messala in a chariot race.
- Easter Parade byCall Number: Library DVDsISBN: 0790798972Publication Date: 1948A 1912 song-and-dance man quarrels with one partner but finds another. His new partner falls head over heels for the king of hoofers.