Interesting Easter Egg Facts
Whether you’re making a fun Easter-themed quiz or just felt like learning some facts about easter eggs, this post has got you covered.
We’ve collected all the best egg facts, world records, and history of the Easter egg.
And, we promise there won’t be a single egg pun in sight!
Before we get started, let’s quickly discuss the popular question: why are eggs associated with Easter?
Originally, church leaders didn’t allow eggs to be eaten during the week leading up to Easter.
Any eggs laid that week were saved and decorated to celebrate the holiday and holy week. These decorated eggs were given to children as gifts.
The Victorians adapted the tradition and made satin-covered cardboard eggs which they filled with Easter gifts.
This has now developed into the tradition that many people enjoy today.
Top 21 Facts About Easter Eggs
Historical Facts
1. The First Decorated Egg Was Over 60,000 Years Old
Archaeologists found a carved ostrich egg in Africa which they believe was used for drinking.
2. Easter Eggs were Originally Made With Cardboard
Before the invention of plastic, people would fill cardboard shells with chocolate and treats.
3. Eggs were associated with Easter since the early days of Christianity
Historians believe eggs were linked to pagan traditions, to symbolize new life and celebrate the beginning of Spring.
4. Bunnies Don’t Lay Eggs!
The fluffy bunny associated with Easter time comes from the Anglo-Saxon festival of ‘Eastre’. This festival featured a spring goddess who used the rabbit to represent fertility. When Germans settled in Pennsylvania in the 1700s, the tradition of the egg-laying bunny came to the states.
5. Decorating Eggs Is A Ukranian Tradition
The ornate eggs were called pysankas, which were made and decorated with wax and dyes. When Ukrainian immigrants came to the U.S. the colorful custom became popular across the country.
6. Priests Used to Throw Eggs at Choir Boys
During medieval times, priests would throw a hard-boiled egg to one of the choir boys. The egg would be tossed around the choir boys until the clock struck 12. Whoever was holding the egg at 12 would get to keep it.
Enjoying the history of Easter eggs? You might like our Open For Christmas Guide To Victorian Christmas Decorations.
Easter Egg World Records
7. World’s Largest Chocolate Easter Egg
In Italy, in 2011 an Easter Egg measuring 10.39 m (34 ft 1.05 in) was crowned the largest ever chocolate egg at the Le Acciaierie Shopping Centre.
The chocolate egg weighed 7,200kg (15,873lbs) and had a circumference of 19.6 m (64 ft 3.65 in) at its widest point.
8. Largest Easter Egg Hunt
501,000 eggs were scattered around Cypress Gardens Adventure Park in Winter Haven, Florida, USA, on 1 April 2007. 9,753 children and their parents took part in the hunt.
9. Most Entrants in an Egg Hunt Competition
12,773 took part in the Fabergé Big Egg Hunt, as part of World Record London, in London, on 21 February – 1 April 2012.
10. Largest Decorated Easter Egg
The largest decorated Easter egg was 14.79m (48ft 6inches) long and 8.40m (27ft 6 inches) wide – 8th March 2008.
11. Longest Rabbit
Not quite an easter egg fact, but we couldn’t leave it out. The longest rabbit is Darius, a Flemish giant rabbit owned by Annette Edwards (UK), who was found to be 4 ft 3 in (129 cm) long!
12. Largest Easter Egg Tree
Zoo Rostock GmbH set the record for the largest Easter egg tree. They decorated a tree with 76,596 painted hen eggs on 8 April 2007.
13. Most Expensive Chocolate Egg Sold at Auction (Non-Jewelled)
The most expensive chocolate egg sold at auction for £7,000 ($11,107)! The egg was made with Amedei Chocolate, edible gold leaf, and filled with couture chocolate and truffles. Yum!
The egg was decorated with 12 smaller chocolate eggs, 20 mini chocolate bars, and 5 white flowers. It took over three days to make and the egg was estimated to weigh over 50kg.
Do you know the difference between a Christmas Cactus and an Easter Cactus? Find out about the Different Types of Holiday Cactus.
Fun Facts About Easter Eggs
14. 500 Million Cadbury Creme Eggs Are Produced Every Year
Since it’s one of the most popular Easter treats, this may not come as a surprise. But this number breaks down to a daily production number of a massive 1.5 million Cadbury creme eggs per day!
15. Around 90 million chocolate bunnies are sold for Easter in the United States
And around 59% of people bite the ears off first.
Consider yourself a chocolate lover? Check out our 19 Best Gifts For Chocolate Lovers.
16. In 2007, a diamond-covered egg sold for almost £9 million ($12,500,000!)
Every hour, a cockerel made of jewels pops up from the top of the egg, flaps its wings four times, nods its head three times, and makes a crowing noise! We think we’d rather have a chocolate egg…
Interesting Facts About Easter Eggs From Around The World
17. Why do Chocolate Eggs Look Like Dinosaur Eggs?
Chocolate making is a very precise skill that has very little room for mistakes. The scaly, crocodile-skin texture you sometimes see on chocolate Easter eggs was developed by chocolatiers in Germany as an easy way to disguise imperfections.
18. In Germany, people dance with eggs.
The egg dance is a traditional Easter game in Germany. People put eggs on the floor and dance around them, trying not to break any. Try it out at your next Easter party! (Outside is probably best…)
19. The White House Annual Egg Roll
Since 1878 the President of the United States celebrates Easter by holding an annual “egg roll” at the White House every Easter Monday. The egg roll is a race that involves pushing an egg along the grass with a long-handled spoon. Another great game for an Easter-themed party!
20. Children in the UK get 8.8 Easter eggs every year on Average
Parents will hide Chocolate eggs around the home for children to find on Easter morning. It becomes a competitive race against siblings and friends.
21. The UK’s first chocolate egg was made by Fry’s of Bristol in 1873
Every year, Prestat, Purveyors of Chocolate by Appointment to Her Majesty the Queen, prepare a very special Easter egg for delivery to the palace.
Final Thoughts on Facts About Easter Eggs
So there you go, there are our 21 interesting facts about Easter Eggs.
We hope you’ve enjoyed the post, learned something new, or have got plenty of material for your Easter-themed trivia quiz.
We really like the idea of doing the egg-dance game (fact 18) or the White House Egg-Roll (fact 19) at our next party.
The kids will love dancing around the egg trying not to break it. Or, realistically trying to break it.
We’ve loved gathering these Easter Egg facts, and are really looking forward to enjoying our own chocolate eggs.
There are some great traditions around the world for Easter.
And, it’s interesting seeing where the things we do nowadays actually originate from.
Related Holiday Facts and Articles from Open For Christmas:
- 9 Seriously Fun Games To Play With Three People
- 24 Christmas Facts You Need to Know Now
- 22 Amazing Christmas Tree Facts You Need to Know
- Why Do We Give Gifts At Christmas?
- What is Elf on the Shelf? The Tradition Uncovered
