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 Artwork by Brenda Rasmussen
The history of gingerbread begins first by understanding the colorful past of gingerbread's most unique and differentiating ingredient: ginger. The search for spices such as ginger was so important that it stimulated exploration around the world. The famous explorers Marco Polo and Vasco de Gama documented the cultivation of ginger carefully in their travels, providing justification for financing future explorations. The trade of spices like ginger became the measure of an empire’s wealth and power, and this lasted for thousands of years. The economics of the cultivation of ginger stimulated further exploration and colonialism. Without question, the quest for ginger has had a tremendous impact on the world as we know it today.
The tradition of using ginger to make a delicious sweet treat began in Europe. In the 11th century, many of the monasteries in Germany and Austria harvested their own honey. Since honey was readily available. The monks used large amounts of honey in making honey cakes. The Egyptians, Greeks and Romans considered honey to be a gift from the gods and hoped for magic, healing, and life-enhancing properties from the honey cake. They not only ate the honey cakes, but wore them into battle as talisman or were buried with the Egyptian kings. When ginger became available, it was added to the honey-spice cakes, turning their honey cakes into “Lebkuchen,” or gingerbread.
 Nuremberg became a major trading center and many artisans were attracted to the town . When gingerbread became popular, painters, sculptors, wood carvers, goldsmiths and craftsmen began added their own creative, artistic touch to the cakes—making them not only delicious desserts, but beautiful artistic masterpieces as well. Intricate molds were carved from wood, the cake was baked, and cooled, then artisans decorated the cakes with frosting, candy, and even gold paint. Therefore, gingerbread bakers also had to be woodcarvers and artists.
The making of gingerbread and its beautiful molds took a master skill, and gingerbread bakers became the elite of the baking professions. The first professional gingerbread guild was created in 1415 in Prague, and a person was prohibited from baking gingerbread unless he was a member of the guild. To become a member of the guild, a baker had to pass the guild regulations to produce a masterpiece which gave evidence of his skills. Gingerbread bakers were so highly esteemed they were allotted exclusive sleeping quarters separate from the other bakers.
Over 600 years ago, Nuremberg gingerbread was highly sought after and sent as diplomatic gifts. Royalty used to hire these master gingerbread bakers to cater to them. Therefore, gingerbread was first associated with wealth and royalty. In 1487, Emperor Frederick III had 4000 gingerbread cookies made imprinted with his image, and passed the cookies to the children of his domain in an attempt to improve his public approval rating.
In other words, gingerbread cookies were used in the first known mass media campaign.
Although gingerbread has been traditionally associated with happy times and festive occasions, it was not specific to the celebration of Christmas. For example, before the Civil War, in New England, the first Tuesday of every June (Muster Day) all men from 18 to 45 were required to go to military training. Many of them would take their families. It became a festive occasion which included gingerbread as an essential part of the tradition. Ironically, gingerbread was even used to help teach reading. In the 14th century, pieces of gingerbread were decorated with lettering, and children were encouraged to buy them and eat them to help them become smart. Gingerbread was even used as a hornbook, or a reading board, as early as the 15th century. The gingerbread hornbooks were called ABC Bread. Since paper was scarce, a special hornbook was made out of gingerbread. When the child learned the letter of the alphabet, he could then eat it.
Centuries ago, people had the belief that there were magical benefits associated with eating certain foods. Eating the gingerbread letters was supposed to be more than just a reward. It was once actually believed that eating the letters as a child would help dispel ignorance and promote literacy.
The girls at the fairs would encourage children to buy pieces of the cake by telling them it was good for their brains to eat them.
The ABC gingerbread, had not only the power to better remind these letterforms by looking at them, but they also connected magical powers with the eating of the bread. By eating it intelligence would increase, and that is why it was given to children at the beginning of the school season.
Thus I can imagine that giving each other, lovers or friends, sweets with wishes on it, with the intention not only to read, but also to eat the letters, will strengthen the power of the wish…the magic of all these folkloristic traditions stays with us, and even if we say not to believe in it anymore, we still cherish it…(Vasser, 1998).
With gingerbread’s rich history, it has a unique advantage over other brands when it comes to gaining market acceptance and achieving household name recognition. Gingerbread Media has a wonderful, differentiating foundation and background upon which to build a new brand.
 Artwork by Brenda rasmussen
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