The Silvesterchlausen Festival blends harmony and anarchy into a bucket-list worthy event. Ages old, the Festival celebrates not one, but two New Year’s Eves in the Appenzell canton of North Eastern Switzerland. Since the 19th century, the first is held on December 31 according to the Gregorian calendar. The second is January 13 per the Julian calendar.
Think pagan rituals to run off bad spirits combined with Christmas carolers, mummers and trick-or-treaters. But these masked revelers (New Year Chläuse) wear extraordinary traditional costumes that fall into one of three categories: pretty, ugly or pretty-ugly.
Leaders clang large bells down the mountains. The group stops at farmhouses, bouncing to jingle smaller bells. They perform Zäuerli, wordless yodels. Finally, they wish onlookers a Happy New Year in exchange for a beverage they drink through straws placed to their masks. Sometimes they receive small cash tips before moving on to the next house.
Author who goes by the name Christian writes in Newly Swissed:
“Even for the Swiss, there is something mystic about Appenzell-Ausserrhoden. Its rolling hills, misty mornings, and small family farms are reminiscent of the Shire in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit. The Appenzeller’s dialect, music, and customs have left many ethnographers baffled as to where exactly these people came from.” (NewlySwissed)
From Pretty To Ugly And In Between, They’re All Fantastic
Costumes for the Silvesterchlausen Festival are not for the faint of heart. They can weigh in at a hefty 40 to 70 pounds. Headpieces can stand nearly two feet high.
“It takes about three years to make a new headpiece, which is the interval at which they are replaced. Many people they visit make small donations to help them buy new materials for their costumes and headpieces.” (NewlySwissed)
Wüeschten-The Ugly. These costumes are covered in pine branches, cedar branches, or straw and are usually adorned with large cowbells. Although beauty is in the eye of the beholder, these masks of the Silvesterklaus Ritual are generally considered ugly. They often have googly eyes, ferocious teeth and some even sport horns somewhat reminiscent of the Krampus masks. (Krampus Enforced Naughty List)
According to Christian, “Though they look evil, they are not meant to be regarded as such.”
Schönen-The Pretty. These are brightly colored traditional outfits (Tracht) with masks that resemble faces from traditional Appenzeller paintings. They also wear giant headpieces that tell a story or show scenes from everyday life in the alpine meadows. The headpieces can weigh up to 8 kilograms and are handmade annually.
Schönen-Wüeschten-The Pretty-Ugly. These costumes utilize natural materials gathered from the forest like those used in the “ugly” costumes. But their masks resemble human faces, instead of monsters. They also combine headpieces made of leaves, nuts, and straw depicting alpine scenes such as barns.
Origins Of The Two New Year’s Eve Celebrations Remain A Mystery
Most historians believe the Silvesterchlausen Festival derives at least in part from Pagan traditions intended to scare away evil spirits of the bygone year in hopes of welcoming a better year ahead. But it combines the Christianized Christmas with a dash of Fasnacht (Carnival) traditions.
According to Alexander Rechsteiner, Head of Marketing & Communication at the National Museum Zurich, the custom is clearly Christian, as its name suggests. The ‘Klaus’ (or Chlaus) refers to Saint Nicholas with traditions that most likely originally were held at Christmas.
“The first written accounts of the custom in the Appenzell region appear in a moral mandate issued by the Reformed church, dating from 1663. The mandate forbids ‘St. Niclaussen’ at Christmas ‘with running about, thumping and bells’ at night. The Reformed Church thoroughly disapproved of the worshipping of a saint – and at Christmas too.” (National Museum Zurich)
By the close of the 1800s, the Silvesterchlausen Festival had shifted to New Year’s Eve. The church tucked it away with an array of other untamed pagan customs like bell-ringing, singing and noise making that were intended to drive away the old year and winter monsters alike.
Related posts:
Winter Witches Stoked Holiday Frenzies. Among them are Baba Yaga who controls winter storms. Frau Prechta from the Alpine regions strictly enforces housework. And then there’s the more benevolent La Befana who appears on the Feast of the Epiphany (January 6). It’s a particularly beloved holiday in Italy. Read All About It HERE
The 13 Bad Boy Yule Lads who got a Santa Clause Makeover HERE.
And of course, there’s Krampus who Enforced the Naughty and Nice list. Read All About It HERE.
Happy New Year to all!
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