ONLINE EXHIBITION | WORLD NATIVITIES 2020

25. Winfred S. Hyatt Nativity

Winfred S. Hyatt
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania
Plaster of Paris, paint, wood, cloth
Circa 1925  

Winfred S. Hyatt made three Nativity scenes for the Raymond Pitcairn family during the 1920s. Hyatt, the principal stained-glass artist and designer for Bryn Athyn Cathedral and later Glencairn, also made Nativity scenes for the Cathedral, the Harold Pitcairn family, and President and Mrs. Eisenhower.  

Hyatt modeled all the figures for the Pitcairn scenes, which were then cast in plaster, painted, and clothed. Craftsmen employed by the Bryn Athyn Studios assisted him with certain elements of the work. The story of the Nativity is depicted from left to right: the first scene features the angel appearing to the shepherds; the second portrays the Christ Child, Mary, and Joseph; and the third shows the wise men gazing at the Star of Bethlehem.  

This Nativity was originally made for Cairnwood, the Bryn Athyn home built by John and Gertrude Pitcairn and lived in by Raymond, their eldest son, until he built Glencairn (right next door). The three scenes were displayed in front of the fireplace in Cairnwood’s parlor hall. They were considered the most important element of the elaborate holiday decorations in the hall, and each year they were not seen by Raymond and Mildred’s children until Christmas morning. The scenes moved with the family to Glencairn in 1939, where they continue to be exhibited each Christmas season.  

In 1954 Raymond Pitcairn commissioned Hyatt to make a single scene of the birth of Christ for President and Mrs. Eisenhower. Hyatt, together with the Bryn Athyn Studios, produced the cases and landscaping, while Hanna Fischer-Binder, an artist from Bucks County, Pennsylvania, carved the human figures from wood. The scene was installed in the East Room of the White House that same year. Two more scenes were added in 1957, with all three being displayed together in the East Room beside the Christmas tree. The Eisenhower Nativity scenes are now the property of the Eisenhower National Historic Site, where they are exhibited each Christmas season at the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center. For more information see From the White House to Gettysburg: Pitcairn-Eisenhower Nativity Scenes (Glencairn Museum News Number 12, 2014).

To explore Glencairn’s World Nativities exhibition Advent Calendar, click here.