The Advent calendar, which is now indispensable during the Advent season, only came into existence at the beginning of the 20th century.

~However, the actual origins can be traced back to the 19th century. The first forms of the Advent calendar come from the Protestant environment.
In religious families, 24 pictures were gradually hung on the wall in December. Simple but no less effective was another variant: 24 chalk marks painted on the wall or door, from which the children were allowed to wipe one away each day (so-called tally calendars).
Or straws were placed in a nativity scene, one for each day until Christmas Eve.

>Other forms include the Christmas clock, or an Advent candle that was allowed to burn down to the next mark each day. The probably earliest form of a homemade Advent calendar dates back to 1851. Those who wanted to order an Advent calendar had to be a little more patient: In 1902, the Evangelical Bookstore in Hamburg published probably the first printed Advent calendar: a Christmas clock for children, which in handling is absolutely comparable to the one that appeared in 1922 at the St. Johannis printing house (Dominik Wunderlin, lic.phil Switzerland).

In 1904, the "Neues Tagblatt Stuttgart" included a Christmas calendar as a gift. However, the Lower Austrian State Museum gives the year 1903 as the year of origin of the printed Advent calendar.

alter Adventskalender mit Weihnachtsmann

Gerhard Lang (1881-1974)

Swabian pastor's son Gerhard Lang invented the first Advent calendar

In contrast, Esther Gajek refers to Gerhard Lang (1881-1974) as the inventor of the Advent calendar. The first printed copy owes its existence to the childhood experiences of the Swabian pastor's son from Maulbronn. His mother drew 24 boxes on a cardboard - each was sewn with a "Wibele".

As a partner in the lithographic institute Reichhold & Lang, Gerhard Lang gave up the pastry pieces and instead used colorful drawings that could be cut out and glued onto a cardboard.

In 1908, this first Advent calendar, although still without windows, left the printing press. At that time, it was still called "Christmas calendar" or "Munich Christmas calendar." Around 1920, the first calendars with little doors to open appeared on the market, as we know them today. Even today, these nostalgic Advent calendars are especially popular.

Christian Motifs

Similarly, the Baden St. John's Printing House produced religious calendars in the early 1920s, whose open windows showed Bible verses instead of pictures. (Left: Bible number advent calendar from Richard Sellmer Verlag) The Sellmer Verlag has a large number of Christian advent calendars in its program.

During the World War

At the end of the 1930s, Gerhard Lang had to give up his business; up to that point, he had issued about 30 different motifs. World War II abruptly ended the rise of the Christmas calendar. The reason was the shortage of paper and the ban on producing picture calendars. Only in the post-war period could the advent calendar regain its success.

From 1945 Sellmer Verlag

In 1945, Richard Sellmer founded a publishing house and released the first advent calendar after the Second World War. It was the advent calendar "The Little Town," which is still available for purchase today. Since then, customers of Sellmer Verlag have been able to buy advent calendars. Advent calendars for adults are just as popular as childlike motifs for the "little" clientele.

Sellmer Advent Calendar Shop

First Advent calendar from 1908 - Gerhard Lang

The cut-out pictures could be glued onto the number fields, see the illustration below.

> first Gerhard Lang Advent calendar

> printed cardboard panels could be cut out and glued on.

> windowless, no little doors to open

Advertising Advent Calendar

Nowadays, the Advent calendar - filled with chocolate or without filling - is also very common as a promotional item. In this segment, mainly modern designs dominate. These Advent calendars are usually produced in large quantities and typically communicate a corresponding advertising message from the company, often combined with a contest or a voucher campaign.

Virtual Advent Calendars

Another modern form of the Advent calendar is the "virtual Advent calendar." This can be used interactively exclusively on the internet. On the respective day in December, the user activates the corresponding number and receives online, for example, videos, short music pieces, sweepstakes, or vouchers.

Living Advent Calendars

Meanwhile, the so-called "living Advent calendar" has also become popular. In this form of the Advent calendar, people meet in front of a different window decorated for Advent each day during Advent. At the respective station, songs are sung, Christmas stories are told, and culinary treats are offered. This form is especially popular among church communities.

Motifs from the 1970s

There is a lot of information on the internet about the historical development of the Advent calendar

Order a reprint from the year 1955

Adventskalender "Kleine Stadt im Mondschein" - Sellmer Adventskalender

Adventskalender "Kleine Stadt im Mondschein" - Sellmer Adventskalender thumbnail

Advent calendar "Small Town in the Moonlight"

Article number933Barcode4025985009332

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Advent calendar reprint "Small Town in the Moonlight" Advent calendar "Small Town in the Moonlight", a reprint from 1955. Simply pull apart and set up - with 6 scenes. Size 29.5 x 21.5 x 48 cm. Doors can be opened in all scenes. A whole town scene unfolds. Very beautiful 3-D effect, a "must" for every collector of advent calendars and an attractive decoration for every Christmas room. A historic advent calendar for adults and children alike. This Christmas calendar recalls times long past. Advent calendar reprint from 1955 3-D effect can be sent by mail in a C4 envelope - an ideal gift Advent calendar has 6 scenes

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Advent calendar "At the city wall"

Article number555Barcode4025985505551

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A very popular Advent calendar for standing up. Contour die-cut with inserted backdrop. First appeared in the early 1970s. Size approx. 26.5 x 35.5 cm. With glitter.