For many who celebrate Epiphany, January 6 is the official end of the Christmas and holiday season.
Epiphany, or “Three Kings Day,” celebrates the visit of the Magi to the Christ child. (Not the “Baby Jesus,” as he was likely a couple of years old when they visited, but that’s neither here nor there.)
No matter what your beliefs, many people associate the story of the Magi with the three gifts they brought: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (Why?!)
As we say goodbye to the holidays, here are 10 very random and geeky facts about unusual gifts from folklore, history, and pop culture.
1. First, what is the deal with the three gifts in the famous Christmas story? Why were these given to a kid? Gold, of course, is symbolic of something given to a King. Frankincense was used in worship in temples, and myrrh is a strong scent used to anoint the dead. Yes, even the gruesome use of myrrh was appreciated in those days.
2. In the Lord of the Rings book Fellowship of the Rings, Galadriel bestowed some meaningful gifts on the members of the fellowship, but Gimli wanted something very unusual. He desired one strand of her golden hair “which surpasses the gold of the earth as the stars surpass the gems of the mine.” She gave him three strands. He vowed to set them in crystal as a pledge of goodwill between the Mountain and the Wood.
3. Gifts given to your spouse for wedding anniversaries aren’t unusual, but in the case of indecisive partners like Richard Burton and Liz Taylor—who were married from 1964 to 1974… and then again from 1975 to 1976—you might need to find new uses. Taylor did this with the 69.42-carat diamond Burton gave her in 1969. In 1978, she auctioned it off for $5 million and purchased a hospital in Botswana. She said that they needed a hospital, and she didn’t need another ring.
4. Many countries like to express their unity with another nation via a large gift, like the Statue of Liberty (given to the U.S. from France) or a friendship pavilion (given to Mexico from Korea). However, Atlas Obscura shows one of the weirder gifts given to a country is from America—well, American movie company 20th Century Fox, to be exact—to New Zealand. A giant pink donut statue was given to the town of Springfield as a promotion for The Simpsons Movie in 2007. The first donut was the victim of arson in 2009, which was then replaced by a big tire, but now stands in fireproof concrete as a popular roadside photo op.
5. Royalty throughout the world love to give each other elaborate gifts, from polar bears to palaces, but one popular gift was a “unicorn horn.” Pope Clement VII gave this “authentic horn” to his niece as a wedding gift because these gifts were believed to have magical powers. These horns were, in fact, tusks from narwhals, but people will believe what they want to believe.
6. Sometimes, in holiday-themed movies, the received gifts are more memorable than the characters. A Christmas Story is the best-known example, as the “official Red Ryder, carbine action, 200-shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time” was the real star. Unfortunately, Ralphie had to suffer through other gifts to get it, including socks and the just-as-famous “pink bunny suit.”
7. Sometimes, bad holiday gifts can be much worse than just being embarrassing. You could always get your kid a mogwai like struggling inventor Randall Peltzer gave his son Billy for Christmas in Gremlins. It turns out the cute little critter, who he named “Gizmo,” was a gremlin, known for wreaking havoc since World War II. If the Peltzers only bothered to learn a new language, they would know the word “mogwai” is Cantonese for “devil.”
8. If waiting to open a gift is hard, imagine being Pandora of Greek mythology. Pandora’s own name even meant “ill-gifted,” as she was made as a punishment to her people. She was created out of clay and bestowed several gifts, including a jar (now more commonly referred to as a box) from Zeus who told her never to open it. Well, she did, and it released all the evils of the world like war, disease, and sorrow. So, the next gift you receive, whether for a birthday or holiday, think before you peek.
9. Since One Piece—the manga turned anime turned live-action Netflix series… soon to see another anime adaption—has had such a huge fan base for some time, fans have long known a simple straw hat as one of the most iconic gifts in anime. Originally given to pirate captain Shanks from Gol D. Roger, Shanks bestowed it to the young Luffy, who himself had designs on being the greatest pirate captain ever. That simple gesture meant so much to Luffy that, not only did the “Straw Hat Pirates” become his crew name, it is instantly recognizable to even casual fans.
10. Finally, a post about gifts during the end of the 12 Days of Christmas needs to include something about those over-the-top gifts from the song, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” How much would this extravagant gift from your true love cost today? According to a CNN business story from November 29 of last year, if you account for inflation, those birds, rings, and people will cost you around $46,729.86. I’ll just take a gift card, thanks.
These little facts might not be helpful in anything but trivia contests… but think of them as my first little gift to you all for 2024.
