Tue, Dec 09
|Washington
Profs & Pints DC: How Nativity Scenes Were Born
“How Nativity Scenes Were Born,” a look at the origins and evolution of the ubiquitous depiction of the first Christmas, with Vanessa R. Corcoran, advising dean and adjunct professor of history at Georgetown University
Time & Location
Dec 09, 2025, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Washington, 801 E St NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA
About the event
Profs and Pints DC presents: “How Nativity Scenes Were Born,” a look at the origins and evolution of the ubiquitous depiction of the first Christmas, with Vanessa R. Corcoran, advising dean and adjunct professor of history at Georgetown University and scholar of medieval and religious history.
The Christmas season brings forth an abundance of Nativity scenes, nearly all depicting the same thing: A small manger containing the baby Jesus and surrounded by his parents, shepherds, the Three Wise Men, and an assortment of barnyard animals.
It’s a scene that Mary and Joseph actually might find unfamiliar. The truth is that its origins are not entirely biblical, and a fair amount of creative license played a role in its evolution into what we see displayed today. The first Nativity scene—a living one—did not appear until more than 1200 years after the birth of Christ, being the creation of St. Francis of…