Stubby as depicted at the Icelandic National Museum
The 3rd and shortest Yuletide Lad Stubby (Stúfur) arrived overnight, seeking out pans to scrape clean and devouring any scraps, hence his other name is Pan-Scraper (Pönnuskefill).
Each day in the lead up to Christmas, the latest Yuletide Lad to arrive makes a stop at the National Museum as he passes through Reykjavik, and spends some time chatting to any children who’ve come to meet him. The museum currently has a Christmas exhibition that includes objects concerning the 13 Yuletide Lads, as well as a display of Christmas trees and cards from different periods.
This homemade Icelandic Christmas tree, part of the museum's Christmas exhibition, is from the early 1900s.
At 1pm on Saturday December 17, folklorist Terry Gunnell will make a presentation at the museum entitled The Icelandic Yule. I attended his Christmas presentation a few years ago and it was a lot of fun. Terry Gunnell is a very entertaining speaker, not to mention an expert on Iceland’s Christmas creatures and other inhabitants such as the ‘hidden people’ or elves (huldufólk).
The Christmas cards on display at the Icelandic National Museum date back to the late 1800s.
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