Where is the World’s Largest Christmas Pyramid?

Where is the World’s Largest Christmas Pyramid? This is located in Striezelmark, German. The pyramid there stands an elegant 14 meters high or nearly 46 feet into the night air. This is vastly greater than a majority of the Christmas Pyramids in the homes across the world which can be up to 50 cm or 20 inches tall. A near 40 footer is now the average size for a German Christmas Pyramid on display in the winter time across Germany including in the town of Dresden. Theirs has 42 figurines on display that tell the true story behind the birth of Jesus.

The modern day Christmas pyramid took its form in the 19th century. This is because the silver and tin in the mines of eastern Germany were running out and the miners decided to take up wood carving. Before that time there was another form of Christmas pyramid. This was a simpler design of 4 wooden poles joined together with fir tree branches attached to it. The first in this form appeared back in the 11th century. An example of this traditional style of Christmas pyramid can be seen at ChristKindl-Markt.com item PYD085X075.

While Christmas pyramids were very popular in Germany and other parts of Europe, most others in the world were unaware of their existences. This changed with the opening of the German Christmas markets that began in the 15th century. These are large open markets that specialized in hand crafted works of art people could purchase for their homes to help them decorate for this wondrous time of the year.

The traditional German Christmas Pyramid has between 4 and 8 different levels. Each level is decorated differently. The layers have a purpose other than just be decorative. Each of them is a separate part of the nativity story that is told at this time of year celebrating the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. The larger the Christmas Pyramid is, the more details can be placed on the levels, but the story remains the same. It comes directly from the Holy Bible.

In the 18th century, the German immigrants coming to America brought with them their German Christmas Pyramids. This is how the pyramid made it across the ocean and now has a firm foundation in the homes across America. 

While the power to turn the German Christmas Carousel Pyramid has always been rising warm air, its source has changed over the centuries. The first ones were powered by the winds in the Ore Mountains. Then came the use of expensive candles, but that saw limited use for economic reasons. In the early 19th century the use of inexpensive kerosene began and the popularity of the Christmas pyramid exploded across Europe. Today with the price of paraffin candles being low, they are again the preferred choice for supplying the warm air power for the German Christmas pyramids in the homes where they are found.