Wolf wishes you the happiest of New Years! Our New Year's Eve and January 1 we named for Saint Sylvester, who they said was responsible for converting Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity, and who died on December 31 in 335 A.D.
We Austrians and Germans never liked to leave things to chance. To ensure that the next twelve months were going to be happy, healthy, and prosperous--don't call us superstitious or anything--we practiced Bleigiessen, or "lead-pouring." In a little metal bowl, you heated a chunk of lead until it melted; then poured drops of it into cold water. The shape of what hardened predicted how your next year would go: a ball meant that luck would roll your way; a sword or knife gave you courage for facing whatever the new year brought; a frog meant that you'd win the lottery; a guitar ensured that a wish would be granted; a fox indicated that you 'd be clever and self-starting; a cup or star guaranteed a happy future; and a mask meant you'd be welcomed everywhere. If only, right?
Of course, once we figured out how toxic lead was if you inhaled the smoke, we substituted tin or candle wax.
And that wasn't all: at midnight on New Year's Eve (Silvesterabend), all the city's church bells were rung, and wherever you were, you grabbed the prettiest girl you could find and hugged and kissed. If you were on the street, you made as much noise as possible, and blew trumpets and pounded drums. The feast that followed featured pork, since pigs were thought to bring good luck; and on January 1, people walked their surviving pigs on leashes, to close the deal.
Finally, New Year's also kicked off the wild Carnival season, Fasching, which lasted till Lent.
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