In 1823, the anonymous publication of the poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” perhaps better known as “The Night before Christmas,” helped to shape much of our modern mythology of the holiday. St. Nicholas’s sleigh is pulled by eight flying reindeer, each of them carefully called by name. Dressed in fur, with twinkling eyes, rosy cheeks, and dimples, St. Nick visits each home to fill children’s stockings with presents. He is described as a merry, plump elf—very different from the original rather somber bishop.