Giving Thanks - Wednesday

For Wednesday's Giving Thanks I am sharing my Cornucopia's. Go here to Kelli's for more.

This is my favorite cornucopia, it is white ceramic. I found it at a thrift shop many years ago. I filled it with faux magnolias and gold fruit.

Another ceramic cornucopia that I found at the same thrift store. This one is filled with silk fall flowers and leaves. Each Thanksgiving I display the cornucopias in different places.

HORN OF PLENTY
The horn of plenty, or the "cornucopia," is a familiar Thanksgiving symbol. It is a symbol of earth's bounty, and reminds us how much of our food comes from the earth. It is said that the Indians would hollow out large gords to carry their fruits and vegetables.

One year the white cornucopia was displayed on my hall tree in the foyer.

Another year I used the white cornucopia as a centerpiece on the dining room table.

The cornucopia (Latin: Cornu Copiae) is a symbol of food and abundance dating back to the 5th century BC, also referred to as horn of plenty, Horn of Amalthea, and harvest cone.
In Greek mythology, Amalthea was a goat who raised Zeus on her breast milk. When her horn was accidentally broken off by Zeus while playing together, this changed Amalthea into a unicorn with 17 whiskers. The god Zeus, in remorse, gave her back her horn. The horn then had supernatural powers which would give person in possession of it whatever he or she wished for. This gave rise to the legend of the cornucopia. The original depictions were of the goat's horn filled with fruits and flowers: deities, especially Fortuna, was depicted with the horn of plenty. The cornucopia was also a symbol for a woman's fertility.

In modern depiction, the cornucopia is typically a hollow, horn-shaped wicker basket typically filled with various kinds of festive fruit and vegetables. In North America, the cornucopia has come to be associated with Thanksgiving and the harvest.

Cornucopia is also the name of Whistler's annual Wine and Food celebration held in November.
Two cornucopias are seen in the flag and state seal of Idaho. There is also one seen in the state seal of North Carolina, the state seal of New Jersey and the coat of arms of Peru.

I hope you enjoyed this post about Cornucopias. Tomorrow I will continue sharing more of my Thanksgiving decorations, please return!

Thanks for visiting!

Katherine