Why does this London Underground poster from 1924 have a Star of David atop a Christmas tree?

Question

There is currently an exhibit at the Art Institute of Chicago displaying posters promoting London Underground transit from the 1920's and 30's.

This interesting piece comes from 1924. A full descripton can be seen on The Library of Congress website. As you can see, it is somewhat unusual in that, despite including a Christmas tree and the word "Christmas," it has a Star of David atop the tree.

The blending of Jewish and Christian traditions in early 20th century Britain surprised me. To my knowledge, placing a star atop a Christmas tree is a common form of decoration, but the specific reference to Judaism seems unusual.

Is there any precedent for this kind of cross-cultural decor? Was it in fact designed for inclusivity? Or, alternatively, was placing a Star of David atop a Christmas tree once a common practice in the mainstream Christian tradition, in Britain or elsewhere?

@IanRingrose Maybe becuase Judaism does not recognise him as such? — Angew is no longer proud of SO, Aug 27 '19 at 12:06
@Angew think of the target of the advert and what songs most of the targets would be singing at Christmas — Ian Ringrose, Aug 27 '19 at 13:19
The person who designed this just put a star on top that came to mind? In that case, we will never know. — , Aug 27 '19 at 13:49
@JanDoggen Not to mention that 6 point stars are far easier to draw than 5 point stars. — Auspex, Aug 27 '19 at 15:27
On a side note, I found it curious that it says "A Merrie Christmas" which, according to some cursory searches went out of favor when Q. Elizabeth II started saying "Happy Christmas" in radio broadcasts. — JimmyJames, Aug 27 '19 at 20:12
@JimmyJames Merry/ie Christmas and its variants are still widely used in the UK, If not more than Happy Christmas — Charlie Tizzard Ó Kevlahan, Aug 28 '19 at 20:49
@JimmyJames The British don't all talk like the Queen, and rarely say 'Happy Christmas'. Instead they say 'Merry Christmas' and 'Happy New Year'. The Merrie spelling is odd (even I suspect for Cooper's era). But I guess he/they just thought it looked a bit ye-olde-worlde, or just a bit nicer as a graphic on the page. That said, one is encountering something of an annus horibilis. — Strawberry, Aug 29 '19 at 11:01
@Strawberry Somehow I got it in my head that the saying "Merry Christmas" was considered a silly American thing to do. Thanks. — JimmyJames, Aug 29 '19 at 13:52
It may be. Recent events should satisfy us that Brits are not beyond being very, very silly. — Strawberry, Aug 29 '19 at 13:58
Related Do Christmas celebrations have these diverse non-Christian origins? — James Jenkins, Aug 29 '19 at 15:08

score 101 · Accepted Answer · edited Aug 27 '19 at 13:10

101

The hexagram is not an exclusively Jewish symbol. For that matter, the Star of David as a symbol of Judaism (as opposed to a symbol used by Jews) is far newer than people realize, dating only to 1897 and the First Zionist Congress. Given that, seeing a six-pointed star on top of a Christmas tree in 1924 is no surprise.

Also, Jesus was of the house of David, so the Star of Bethlehem being designed as a Star of David should be especially unsurprising

edited Aug 27 '19 at 13:10

C Monsour

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answered Aug 27 '19 at 00:33

Mark

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Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat. – MCW Aug 27 '19 at 13:49
+1. Here's a 1930s Ukrainian Christmas post-card, a child is holding a traditional Ukrainian Christmas pole with a star which is a hexagram with XP inside it. The text is "Look with your kind eye, Oh the Son of God, down unto our land, Ukraine..." – Yellow Sky Aug 30 '19 at 13:05

Why does this London Underground poster from 1924 have a Star of David atop a Christmas tree?

1 Answers1