Part 6/9:
While the image of the Easter bunny is now colloquially accepted, hares were once the significant beasts of the season. Revered by goddesses like Aostra, hares were linked to fertility and the moon. Their elusive nature, juxtaposed against the more domestic bunny, speaks to a wildness lost in modern interpretations.
Interestingly, there were even references to an Easter fox in ancient traditions, illustrating a trickster archetype that flitted between the human realm and nature. By the 18th century, this cunning figure faded from the narratives, replaced by the gentler rabbit as the face of Easter celebrations.