This 11 piece Large Nativity Character Set
is made of a poly/ resin blend. The figures in this set range in size from 12”-36”. These figures are perfect for the Large Wooden Nativity Stable #70495. Each figure is painted to look antiqued. Each set includes the Holy Family, the three Wise Men, Gloria the Angel, Gabriel the Shepherd, an ox, a donkey, and a sheep. Mary wears a salmon colored gown while kneeling in a praying position looking down at baby Jesus. She also wears a navy cape draped over her shoulders and a cream colored mantle on her head. Joseph is wearing a brown tunic with a burgundy sheath wrapped around his shoulder. In his left hand he holds a staff while looking down. Baby Jesus lies in a straw covered crib with his hands outstretched and has a blue cloth covering him. King Melchior kneels before Jesus in a Palestine purple tunic with a rust colored cape around him. In his hands he holds the gift of gold. He wears a cream turban with a red jeweled center and has a grey beard. King Balthazar is wearing a Yale blue tunic with a midnight blue sheath. He also wears an off white turban with red lining with a jeweled crown. He holds an urn filled with myrrh for baby Jesus. King Gaspar is wearing a sepia colored tunic with a fur shawl around his shoulders. He wears a maroon and gold crown and carries a vessel filled with frankincense for Jesus. The angel Gloria kneels before Jesus in a praying position in a peridot colored gown with a red sash around her shoulder. She has a gold halo on her head and ecru colored wings. The shepherd, Gabriel, wears a moss green shirt with brown shorts, and a red with gold stripes scarf. Gabriel has a long brown fur vest over his clothes. He has a sheep wrapped around his neck, with another at his feet. He also has a brown satchel slung over his shoulder. This set also includes a grey donkey, a brown ox, and a sheep, all in a lying position.
Cycle of the Nativity Story:
For many of us Christmas means Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and the events thereon.
However there are a great number of events and stories which surround the Nativity of Christ. Some are accepted as the Gospel truths, others are a little dubious in the sense that they may have been subjected to later embellishments in the course of storytelling and translating; or simply that there were only fragments (tiny scraps of writings) which did not give a full enough text - such as the worthy Gospel of St Peter himself - to make them worth keeping in the New Testament. There were two main gospels which contained accounts of the Nativity. These were called the 'Infant Narratives'. The oldest is from the protoevangelium of St James. There is some basis for truth, and in fact the Eastern Christian Church accepts many of these stories as part of the old liturgy of the Nativity. But Western Christians have put them in the 'appocryphal gospels' (not to be confused with the Apocalypse!) ie, stories which might have a layer of legendary 'jam' between the sponge truths!)
Such stories enjoyed popularity right up the Norman invasion of Britain, which happened some time after the rift between the East and West Christians. Until The Norman invasion, Christian imagery tended to be very Byzantine in style, and the stories in the Nativity Cycle were often painted onto church walls as a visual aid to largely illiterate congregation. The Normans, with the blessing of Rome, set about destroying these images, because they were not Western, and a new order was evolved. However, as they covered all the old picture stories up with Limewash, they were all preserved rather than destroyed, so that today many restored churches in England have this wonderful old witness to the early stories of Christ's nativity for all to see!
Select the following link to view all of our wonderful Christmas nativity scene sets.
Select the following link to view all of our fabulous nativity figurines.