« Red Christmas // ‘Three Kings’ »
Red Santa
Posted on November 28th, 2010 by steve
‘One of the most iconic drawings of Santa, it is also in the public domain.’
Credit for the visual development of ‘Santa Claus’ goes to illustrator Thomas Nast (1840-1902).
And one of Nast’s most famous drawings – from the January 1, 1881 edition of Harper’s Weekly (above) – has this habit of showing up in odd places every holiday season. Some original, some reinterpretations.
I’ve seen it appear on everything from mugs to tees to gift bags to necklaces to ornaments. With the iconic red suit (which was actually developed by the Coca-Cola Company) added to some of the versions.
Animated online greeting card
Pictured are a few interpretations I found online. Wonder how many other versions actually exist.
Glass medallion and gnome
