Cribs have a long and fascinating history. It goes back to the drawings on catacomb walls of early Christendom. In 17th century Italy, cribs increased in popularity especially with kings. They competed with each other for the most proficient crib artisans of their times to construct their over elaborate cribs for them.

Although perhaps few know there exists a world of people who research, study, and document the history of cribs. Others collect priceless and historical cribs and figurines of different eras.

Notably in Via San Gregorio Armeno in Naples you can still find dedicated artisans who work all year round to create highly artistic cribs and intricate figurines. There are also innumerable museums and exhibitions worldwide which show the most treasured collections. In central Europe various associations exist to promote this artistic expression. The tradition has been passed from generation to generation and is still very strong today. Crib making is also popular in Malta. Here the tradition dates back to almost three hundred years ago. It was brought here from nearby Sicily were together with the rest of Italy, France, Poland, Germany and Spain, cribs have always been a popular form of Christian art.

Several local dilettante work hard for several months well before the Christmas season to create a detailed representation of that night when Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. Whilst the 'family' crib is very popular here, those created by professional artists are very rare and so the level of artistry does not match that found in Europe.

Cribs come in different forms, styles and sizes. Today we can still appreciate the elaborate Neapolitan crib (see the 2 figurines in this page), the rustic Sicilian crib and the different styles of other Italian and Spanish regions. The materials used are also very varied. Paper mache is the most common although cork and polystyrene are also used. Some use rustic stone to form the caves and scenery of the crib.

 The traditional Maltese old crib figurines were modeled in clay. The typical figures are the two street singers, the pipe and drum players, the baker, woman with a flour sack, the sleeping man, the man with both hands lifted up in wonder, the man sprawled on his stomach and perched on top of the grotto looking down at Baby Jesus and a good number of white wax sheep. These penny clay figurines were easily acquired and easily broken too. There was a great turnover of such figurines which were found for sale in each town and village local bazaars.

Nowadays modern plastic figurines have replaced the traditional clay figures in the Maltese family crib. However many collectionists treasure handmade clay figurines of renowned local artists such as those made by Giusti and Nazzareno Gauci (Disma) and the younger generation of artists such as Pierre Bugeja, Rosario Darmanin and Joe Camilleri