Santons of Provence: A Christmas Tradition
Santons of Provence – Christmas is celebrated in a special way in Provence with little figurines called Santons.
They are a lovely French tradition. Santons are used to create a nativity scene (crèche) with the key religious figurines of Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus together with the people of the south of France.
The most popular Santons representing the people from southern France are the baker, butcher, shepherd, fisherman, wood cutter, washer-woman and vintner. Many of the trades are represented by the Santons and adding these folk to the nativity scene is what makes this Christmas tradition unique to Provence.
Creating a Provençal crèche follows the traditional idea of the birth of Baby Jesus in his manger, except he is born in Provence and all the townspeople in the scene are travelling to see him.
How Santons Are Made
The word santon comes from the Provencal language santoun and means “little saint”. Genuine santons of Provence are made from clay and hand painted and can be created either entirely by hand (hand moulded) or part of a series where they are made in lots from moulds.
Hand moulded santons will each be given a slightly different expression by the santonnier (santon artist/sculptor) at the time of creation and this is what makes shopping for santons so wonderful. I take forever looking at all the slight differences in facial expressions, hair styles, face features and clothing details.
The steps in making santons are:
- Modelling
- Drying (which can take 5 to 7 days in the open air)
- De-burring (removing clay burrs with a knife and smoothing with a wet brush)
- Cooking (takes about 3 days)
- Painting
Santonniers
Many santonniers live in the areas of Aubagne, Marseille, Aix en Provence and Arles.
Santons Marcel Carbonel is a museum and workshop in Marseille with over 2000 handmade, hand-painted crib figures from around the world. The website has detailed information on how Santons are made, their history, a catalogue for purchase, how to make a crèche (nativity scene) and background of their santonniers. (The website is in French, but even if you can’t read it all, this site is very interesting and worth a look.)
Christmas Markets and Santons
Santons are easy to purchase before Christmas with markets and fairs including santon stalls, and with so much choice at this time of the year, many families add new santons to their collections during this season and eventually pass on their collections to the next generation.
Markets still sell santons in the week following 25 December with the crèche on display after Christmas. The crèche is traditionally dismantled before Candlemas Day.
The idea of representing the nativity scene with tiny characters has been said to have first started in churches during the 13th century but during the French Revolution public nativity scenes were banned so families created their own scenes in their homes.
The addition of santons into nativity scenes in Provence began in the 19th century and has been a tradition since. Collecting santons and creating a nativity scene is something that our family looks forward to each year and a fabulous French tradition.
Related French Traditions
La Chandeleur or Candlemas: A French Tradition – a day of celebration that includes pancakes
French Christmas Traditions – how do the French celebrate their Christmas
