As we get set to binge on Easter eggs, serves up their history in bite-sized chunks
Julian Humphrys
Why are eggs linked with Easter time?
It’s a mixture of symbolism and practicality. Eggs had long been seen as a symbol of new life and therefore of spring and, in later times, of the resurrection of Christ. Added to this was the fact that eggs were regarded by the medieval church as meat and were therefore forbidden during Lent. But as hens continued laying during the period this meant that there would be plenty of them around by Easter.
What were Easter eggs like in the medieval period?
Hard boiled and decorated. Edward I of England is reported to have paid for 450 eggs to be boiled and stained for distribution to the royal household at Easter.
When did people start eating chocolate eggs?
The first were produced in France and Germany in the early 19th century. JS Fry of Bristol made Britain’s first chocolate egg in 1873, and Cadbury of Birmingham followed suit two years later.
These early eggs were made of dark chocolate, but in 1905 Cadbury’s launched its Dairy Milk chocolate which was an instant hit and soon became the chocolate of choice for British Easter eggs.
Who ate them?
Initially just the rich. The early chocolate eggs were rather complicated to make and were seen as a luxury gift. But improved methods of production and transportation and a lowering of trade tariffs on cocoa eventually made chocolate eggs affordable to a mass market, although adults remained the target audience until the 1950s.
What are the world’s most expensive Easter eggs?
The jewelled eggs that were created by Peter Carl Fabergé and his company for the Russian royal family between 1885 and 1917. The 1887 egg was rediscovered in 2012 and was valued at £20m.
The intricacy of the design of these eggs is legendary. The first Fabergé egg featured an enamelled shell which opened to reveal a gold yolk which in turn opened to reveal a multicoloured gold hen containing a diamond replica of the imperial crown from which hung a ruby. Just 50 of these luxurious eggs were made – that’s a far cry from the 200 million Cadbury Creme Eggs that are sold in Britain every year.