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Easter is symbolized in a number of ways, but it's the Easter Bunny, depicted as a rabbit delivering Easter eggs, that endures. According to tradition, this folkloric animal, which originated in Germany as the "Easter Hare," would lay colorful eggs for children to find, the egg like the rabbit itself being regarded as an ancient symbol of fertility, rebirth, and new life—all things associated with the springtime celebration of Easter!
Intrigued? Then hop through this colorful and witty appreciation of the Easter Bunny.
An early 20th-century card shows a child in a bunny costume clutching two colored Easter eggs. In medieval Europe, the rabbit was a popular symbol for spring because of its fertility. A German legend said that after a long winter's sleep, an Easter Bunny would lay bright-colored eggs in the grass for good children to find.
An Easter card from 1900 depicting a white rabbit painting Easter greetings on an egg in a spring garden.
An Easter Bunny plays violin for his "children" in this fantasy postcard printed in the early 20th century in Rochester, New York, USA.
This Easter postcard features an anthropomorphic rabbit taking a photograph of infant children hatching from eggs.
Two rabbits dance together while another plays guitar in this Easter postcard illustration from 1910.
This vintage illustration from 1935 shows a smiling bunny about to go shopping for Easter eggs.
A humorous illustration of a chicken chasing an Easter Bunny representing early 20th-century packaging for egg dye.
White rabbits feature prominently in Easter cards, symbolic as they are of love, tenderness, and good luck.
Friedebald and Ilsebill, two lifelike child dolls from the German brand Käthe Kruse, dressed in naval suits with their Easter Bunny, photographed around 1932.
Children, one dressed as a white rabbit, take part in the traditional Easter Egg Roll in 1955 outside the White House in Washington, D.C. The annual event dates back to 1878.
A 1960's American household greets a mythical Easter Bunny as it "delivers" gifts for the children.
American comedian Bernie Mac (1957–2008) seen here in 1994 dressed as the Easter Bunny chats with sick children at La Rabida Children's Hospital in Chicago.
Easter is traditionally a time when children receive eggs, which symbolize new life and, from a Christian perspective, are said to represent Jesus' emergence from the tomb and resurrection.
This Easter Bunny is making its rounds in a vintage 1910 Renault EK Cabriolet.
Homemade Easter Bunny baked buns are simply yummy and a great tasty brunch or springtime snack idea.
Easter is big business, and anything featuring a bunny tends to sell quickly, especially a Bunny Box Easter Egg.
Chocolate bunnies first appeared in Germany in the mid-19th century. They gained mass appeal in 1890 when American shop owner Robert Strohecker created a 5-foot- (1.5-m-) tall chocolate bunny as an Easter promotion in his drug store.
Swiss chocolatier and confectionery company Lindt, founded in 1845, produced its first famous chocolate rabbit, wrapped in gold foil and with a red ribbon around its neck, in 1952.
A smiling chocolate bunny looking out of an Easter egg. Ninety million chocolate Easter bunnies are produced worldwide every year!
A more traditional Easter Bunny gift is a decorative wooden rabbit.
A toy maker paints the face of a typical woodwork "bended ear bunny" in the workshops of the Holzkunst Gahlenz company in Gahlenz, Germany. Founded in 1928, Gahlenz is well known for its large variety of Easter ornaments and bunnies.
A mailbox for the Easter Bunny in Osterhausen, Germany. The mailbox is located at a kindergarten in the town and is used by children to send their wish lists to the Easter Bunny via the mailbox.
This elaborate Easter Bunny picnic exhibition is brightening up a department store shop window in Magdeburg, Germany.
In 1984, Walt Disney issued a set of postage stamps featuring cartoon bunnies, including Thumper from 'Bambi,' depicted as an Easter Bunny.
Easter Bunny shortbread cookies served with colorfully-decorated eggs make a deliciously tempting celebration nibble.
Back in 2015, a wax figure of Katy Perry dressed as an Easter Bunny was unveiled at Berlin's Madame Tussauds.
An Easter-themed display at the Bunny Museum in Pasadena, California. The world record-holding museum dedicated to rabbits opened to the public in 1998, and holds more than 33,000 bunny-related items.
Meanwhile in Europe, the Easter Egg Museum in Sonnenbühl, Germany is home to 1,000 decorated eggs spanning various styles (anything from religious art to popular TV culture). Pictured is an egg in the shape of an Easter Bunny.
Are you preparing an Easter dinner this year? Impress your guests with this chocolate bunny plating service and seating arrangement idea.
Icing sugar Easter bunnies set in sugared grass and flowers top these great-looking cupcakes. What a perfect Easter Day idea!
Sources: (Good Housekeeping) (Rabbit Care Tips) (Chocolate Fetish)
What is it about the Easter Bunny?
Why is the rabbit associated with the celebration of Easter?
LIFESTYLE Holidays
Easter is symbolized in a number of ways, but it's the Easter Bunny, depicted as a rabbit delivering Easter eggs, that endures. According to tradition, this folkloric animal, which originated in Germany as the "Easter Hare," would lay colorful eggs for children to find, the egg like the rabbit itself being regarded as an ancient symbol of fertility, rebirth, and new life—all things associated with the springtime celebration of Easter!
Intrigued? Then hop through this colorful and witty appreciation of the Easter Bunny.