From the first Christmas celebrations in Colonial America to Christmas in the 1990s, this book explores in detail holiday preparations, tree traditions, ornaments, decorations, and lights. Through over 500 colour photographs illustrating over 3,000 objects, catalog reprints, and historical photographs, it documents Christmas history and decade by decade.This marvelous and comprehensive study will be an invaluable aid to collectors, museum curators, and all Christmas enthusiasts, helping them to better understand how the popular holiday evolved. An index references both the text and the photographs. There is a newly revised price guide that includes a value for each item shown in the book.