Early Easter Bunny

The Winterthur Museum (CLICK) recently acquired one of the earliest known American depictions of the Easter Bunny. It seems that the Christmas tree, the Easter bunny and coloured eggs were brought to the USA by immigrants from southwestern Germany in the 1700s. This early example has been attributed to schoolmaster Johann Conrad Gilbert (1734–1812), who emigrated from Germany in 1757. He eventually settled in Berks County, Pennsylvania. It looks like a hare to me. Maybe we should celebrate Easter with mad March hares, not bunnies.