Who is the real Santa Claus?

For immediate release

Who Is the Real Santa Claus?

A delightful world tour of holiday traditions!

During the month of December, young and old alike are invited to come meet Melchior, Babushka, Black Peter, and Santa Claus at Pointe-à-Callière, the Montréal Museum of Archaeology and History. While visiting the archaeological remains, children will meet these four Christmas characters who will explain how the holidays are celebrated in their homelands.

A fantastical, theatrical tour! Melchior, the old king of Arabia and Nubia, left Persia along with two other Magi kings — Balthazar and Caspar —following a star guiding them to the Christ Child. The good Magi king will also cross paths with Babushka on his way to Bethlehem.

From Russia, Babushka is a grandmother with a heart of gold. She roams her country, leaving presents for all new-borns in the hope that one of them is the baby Jesus. Seated next to her fireplace, she welcomes children to the Museum and teaches them how to say “Merry Christmas!” in Russian.

While Melchior rewards good children with presents, Black Peter instead punishes those who’ve been bad by filling their shoes with turnips, stones, and lumps of coal!

The final stop on the tour is with Santa Claus — in his red suit and long white beard —, probably the most popular and well-known Christmas figure of them all. Santa tells his story and explains how he manages to deliver so many gifts around the world in a single night.

Our brief world tour comes to an end with wishes of peace and joy… and a few treats.

This activity takes place on the weekends of December 3-4, 10-11, 17-18 and 23, 24 27, 28, 29, 30 and 31, 2010, from 12:30 pm to 4:45 pm Please allow approximately 45 minutes for the tour. The last tour in English is at 3:00 pm. Number of participants for each tour are limited. This is an activity for the whole family and is included in the price of admission to the Museum.

Schedule of tours

In English : 1:30 pm and 3:30 pm In French : 12:30 pm, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm

The Museum is subsidized by the city of Montréal.