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December 26, 1924. Washington, D.C. "Nevine and Nemai Yousry." Children of the Egyptian ambassador and their Christmas tree. View full size.
The bow on the little girl's head is perfection. Perhaps that's the ornamental lack of proportion that stuart noticed!
Judging by the pipe-looking stem and the look of the branches, I would guess this to be an example of technology not nature. Perhaps that is why it's such an example of perfection. We used a lot of that lead tinsel when I was young, and then the plastic stuff. You don't see tinsel much in the stores today, I guess it went out of favor. We haven't put tinsel on our tree for 35 years. We still go out to the woods and hack down one of those misshapen trees that nature provides.
That tree is actually rather well shaped for the period. Skimpy and and somewhat misshapen Christmas trees seemed pretty much standard in those days. It was a far cry from the carefully cultured specimens available in Christmas tree lots now.
Looks to be about a four foot feather tree, post war of course. The cotton batting gave the illusion of snowy boughs and the reflectors behind the lamps would add further illumination. This tree would have been a dandy to see lit up.
Stuart51, I'm not seeing the wretched excess. The tree looks to be fairly modest by today's standards..
These photos of Christmas trees from the '20s so often reveal just how far we are today from that garish era. This one, however, has got to be the quintessential example of wretched excess and lack of all proportion. Quite stunning, in its own way.
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