Himmeli

The Finnish straw ornament, himmeli, takes its name from the Swedish word for sky or heaven—himmel. Traditionally they were hung above dining tables to ensure a fruitful rye harvest. They were hung at Christmas and stayed up until Midsummer. Today they are commonly used as Christmas ornaments but can also serve as home decoration all year. Buillding himmeli is an exercise in geometry. Using strong rye straw and string, a triangle is constructed, then, adding more straw to form additional triangles, and eventually a three-dimensional diamond shape. Complex mobiles are formed with these simple shapes. A well-constructed himmeli will last decades.

Image by Volker von Bonin, Images from History Collection, The National Board of Antiquities. CC BY 4.0

Image by Markku Hyvönen, 1990, Ethnology Image Collection, The National Board of Antiquities. CC BY 4.0