WINSTON-SALEM (WFMY) -- That familiar glow on top of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has been lighting up the hospital and the city of Winston-Salem for 26 years.
But Moravian stars and the way they’re made are a tradition that traces back centuries.
“They’ve been making stars like since the 1850s,” said Ken Manuel, Master Star Maker for Old Salem, who’s been hand-crafting paper Moravian stars for over a decade.
According to Emily Simmons, a historic interpreter at The Boys’ School, the Moravian star is not only “the most iconic symbol of the Moravian church,” it was also a common geometry project at a boys’ school in Niesky, Germany.
“Their Easter assignment was to design and make a polyhedron which we now call a Moravian Star,” Manuel explained.
Manuel makes nearly fifteen hundred of these Moravian stars every year, ranging from 3 inches to 21 inches in size.
It all starts with little pieces of paper that he shapes and glues together, the same way they made them centuries ago, just with white cardstock and Elmer’s adhesive instead of parchment and beeswax.
Today, they’ve become a staple of the Winston-Salem community, used by those within and outside the Moravian faith, especially during the holidays.
Traditionally, the star is displayed through advent in the Moravian faith.
“It represents the star that led the three wise men to Bethlehem to the birth of Jesus Christ,” Simmons explained.
A typical Moravian star is about 21 inches and has 26 points, although sometimes, star makers like Max Brady, from Greensboro, venture into the 110-pointer territory.
Brady designed and facilitated the creation of the 110-point Moravian star that will be used at Home Moravian Church’s Candle Tea events this year starting November 29.
“A journey through Candle Tea gives our guests the opportunity to see our beautiful handmade stars and sumptuous natural decorations, hear Moravian history and customs,” said Helen Betts, chair of this year’s Candle Tea celebration.
But no matter how they’re made, star makers and those who hang them can agree that there’s one reason this tradition lives on:
“It is a thing of beauty,” Manuel says.
You can catch Manuel making and teaching how to make Moravian stars at "Salem Saturdays at Christmas" on December 1st and 8th.
Moravian stars are available for purchase at the various Merchants at Old Salem and online.
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