The origins of the Advent Calendar

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We all have an advent calendar, but how did they come about? Dr Kath Bates is an advent calendar expert, and she told BBC Radio Berkshire's Sarah Walker all the answers. Dr Kath Bates: "We go back to late 19th century journey, and at that point advent was first physically marked. Members of the church would mark numbers on their doors. "This idea was taken up by a guy in Hamburg in about 1902 who made a Christmas clock. "It started with a confectionery angle, with sweets on a board, and a mother just treating her child."