Duncan Royale The Pixie

The little pixies dressed in green with pointed hats and shoes originated in Ireland and have found their way into the American Christmas scene as Santa’s helpers, known as elves. 

Stories and legends of pixies have been told for centuries. Some pixies were good and helpful; others bad and destructive, but most of all they were mischief makers. ft was said the Pixie tangled the hair of the horse’s mane so that it could not be combed; he also caused milk to sour, and hid the master’s hat. They were always busy. 

Each country had its own type of pixies with varying characteristics. The English Pixies were small and handsome in their green clothes. At night they were said to be dancing fairy rings to the music of crickets and grasshoppers. 

The German Pixies were tiny with long gray beards who loved clean Home Pages and were known to help the servants in house holds do their chores. 

Pixies were never seen doing any of these things because they could disappear in the wink of an eye. That is why children could never catch them when they left gifts at Christmas time. Many people held superstitious beliefs about the Pixie’s power and did not want to annoy them. 

As Christian customs became more widespread, the character of the Pixie changed, instead of staying out of sight they began To do things openly and took on the new role of gift bringers at Christmas, During Victorian times illustrators gave them an angelic appearance and showed them helping Christkindt. 

In the mid-nineteenth century, C. C. Moore’s poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas” promoted the image of Santa Claus we see today. Undoubtedly his little elves keep him informed on “who’s naughty and who’s nice” as they busily make toys in the North Pole workshop. How else could Santa Claus have all those toys ready each Christmas?