Who is Department 56?

From the holiday tree to the gifts tucked in the stockings, decorating and gift giving are at the heart of holiday celebrations. Department 56 offers great decorating and gift ideas with its finely crafted lighted collectible Villages.

Department 56 began in 1976 with the introduction of six hand-painted lighted ceramic buildings ... the first pieces of The Original Snow Village®. As this collection continued to grow, so did Department 56. Today, Department 56 offers eight different Village series along with other collectible lines including Snowbabies™, Silhouette Treasures™, Storybook Village®, and Snowbunnies®.

Extensive research contributes to the charm and detail of each collectible piece. During production, the Department 56 logo is cast into the molds to guarantee authenticity. Each year several pieces are retired from production and the molds broken; this limits the number of pieces produced and allows room for new additions to the collectible lines.