News

The Weird True History of the Easter Bunny

From Constantinople to “the Singing Cowboy,” the odd folk tradition of egg-delivering rabbits was invented bit by bit.

Illustration by Christianity Today / Source Images: Getty

One-hundred-fifty years ago, a German scholar complained that the Easter bunny was “inexplicable.” It remains so today. The egg-delivering hare has no obvious religious meaning nor clear connection to the holiday. It looks, in some ways, like an ancient myth that has been Christianized, but there is no known myth or fable that gave birth to this pesky rabbit.

And the true story, in fact, may not clear up much befuddlement. The Easter bunny was invented bit by bit and all at once, as people adopted, adapted, invented, and recreated pieces of an odd folk tradition to suit their celebrations.

Here are the tracks, such as they are, that the Easter bunny has left in our history:

692 – A church council in Constantinople, attempting to ensure religious practices are consistent across Christendom, prohibits eating dairy and eggs during Lent. Since boiled eggs keep longer, they become part of Easter celebrations.

1290 – English King Edward I orders 450 eggs decorated with dye and gold leaf to be given as gifts to the royal household on Easter.

1530Madonna of the Rabbit is painted by Titian, depicting the Virgin Mary with her hand on a white rabbit. Some believed the animal had the power to reproduce asexually.

1569 – A Dutch satire critiquing “Romish religion” lists decorated eggs as one of the ridiculous practices of the Catholic Church, along with candles, icons, palm branches, ashes, various hats, and vestments.

1572 – A Catholic priest is tied to a cross in Edinburgh and pelted with eggs. Reformer John Knox writes about it, putting down the first known use of the English phrase Easter eggs.

1682 – Physician Georg Franck von Franckenau describes children in the Heidelberg area hunting for “hare’s eggs” in herb gardens. It is the first known description of an Easter egg hunt.

1725 – In France, Louis XIV has a chocolate egg made to celebrate the end of the Lenten fast.

1800 – Johann Conrad Gilbert, a German artist in Pennsylvania, paints an Easter rabbit—the first known depiction in America.

1819 – Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, mother of the future Queen Victoria, moves from Germany to England and takes with her the tradition of Easter egg hunts.

1835 – Jacob Grimm, of Brothers Grimm fame, speculates without evidence about a possible connection between the Easter hare and an ancient pagan goddess.

1848 – The failure of a revolution leads to mass migration from Germany to the US. A few years later, “Easter hare” and “Easter rabbit” appear in print in America.

1874 – German philologist Adolf Holtzmann writes, “The Easter hare is inexplicable to me.” He imagines there could be a connection to a pagan goddess.

1874 – In England, an Anglican priest pays young men 100 eggs if they can kill a hare before 10 a.m. on Easter Monday.

1875 – Cadbury Chocolate starts to manufacture chocolate eggs for Easter in England.

1878 – President Rutherford B. Hayes invites children to roll Easter eggs at the White House after Congress forbids all playing on Capitol Hill, starting a long-running tradition.

1883 – German folklorist K. A. Oberle speculates the Easter hare tradition may have come from a myth about a pagan goddess turning a bird into a rabbit. He has no evidence such a myth ever existed.

1900 – A Michigan newspaper claims the story of a pagan goddess who turned a bird into a rabbit is “one of the oldest in mythology.” Others repeat the claim in stories about the “Easter bunny,” though there is no such ancient myth.

1903 – British retailers sell wooden eggs with toys inside for Easter.

1910 – A German newspaper notes the northern tradition of an Easter fox is dying out, replaced by the more popular Easter hare from the south.

1950 – A Pennsylvania department store sets up a photo booth where children can have their picture taken with the “Famous Easter Bunny” for $1. In Nashville, a department store sponsors a parade with the “Real Easter Bunny.”

1951 – An Easter bunny song, “Here Comes Peter Cottontail,” sung by Gene Autry, hits No. 3 on the Billboard charts in the US.

Also in this issue

In the face of the horrific war begun by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israelis, we ask: Why? For this issue, Mike Cosper, director of CT Media, traveled to war-torn places in Israel to learn about the harmful ideology that led to the violence against innocents. You’ll also read Southeast Asia editor Angela Fulton's exploration of controversies around “street language” Bibles and translated “bad words” in Scripture. News writer Emily Belz spent time in East Palestine, Ohio, after a catastrophe crippled the small town and tells how the church is doing crisis response. And don’t miss reflections on a year after the Asbury University revival from the school’s president and news editor Daniel Silliman’s weird Easter Bunny history.

Cover Story

The Evil Ideas Behind October 7

Seeing Stars, Not Light Pollution

Is the Pope Catholic? Then These Christians Say Don’t Pray with Him.

Testimony

I Hated ‘Church People.’ But I Knew I Needed Them.

The Old Testament Foretells the Crucifixion. What about the Resurrection?

The Holy Sound Stuck Inside Your Head

Should the Bible Sound Like the Language in the Streets?

Political Homelessness Is a Good Start

We Can’t Turn a Blind Eye to Harmful Ideologies

Faithfulness Requires Risk

Five Books to Encourage Single Parents

Hackers Try to Take AI to Church

Medical Cost Sharing Ministry Stole Millions

An Orphan Took Over an Orphanage. Its Mission Changed.

Empty Streets to the Empty Grave

Can Christian Colleges Make the Grade?

Review

The Bible Was Written to Be Heard and Spoken to Be Read

Review

The Surprising Practicality of Christian Philosophy

New & Noteworthy Fiction

What the Asbury Revival Taught Me About Gen Z

How Doubt Derailed a Train Town

View issue

Our Latest

Expert: Ukraine’s Ban on Russian Orthodox Church Is Compatible with Religious Freedom

Despite GOP concerns over government interference, local evangelicals agree that the historic church must fully separate from its Moscow parent.

News

Ohio Haitians Feel Panic, Local Christians Try to Repair Divides

As Donald Trump’s unfounded claims circulate, Springfield pastors and immigrant leaders deal with the real-world consequences.

Review

A Pastor’s Wife Was Murdered. God Had Prepared Him for It.

In the aftermath of a senseless killing, Davey Blackburn encountered “signs and wonders” hinting at its place in a divine plan.

The Church Can Help End the Phone-Based Childhood

Christians fought for laws to protect children during the Industrial Revolution. We can do it again in the smartphone age.

Taste and See If the Show is Good

Christians like to talk up pop culture’s resonance with our faith. But what matters more is our own conformity to Christ.

The Bulletin

Don’t Blame Me

The Bulletin considers the end of Chinese international adoptions, recaps the week’s presidential debate, and talks about friendship across political divides with Taylor Swift as a case study.

Public Theology Project

The Uneasy Conscience of Christian Nationalism

Instead of worldly control of society, Christ calls for renewed hearts.

News

What It Takes to Plant Churches in Europe

Where some see ambition as key to evangelism, others experiment with subtler ways of connecting to people who don’t think they need God.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube