# How can I complete my set of wise men? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 6, 2009, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041 "2009-01-06T04:28:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/1 "2009-01-06T04:28:56Z")
Many years ago, Mrs. Piper bought me a set of two wise men. They’re nice tubby little porcelain men, with candles inside them. The heads lift off to burn the candles, but we’ve never done that - just like them as they are. So we’ve got Myrrh and Gold, but not Frankincense. The reason is that I saw them in the shop, mentioned that I liked them, and Mrs Piper contacted Piper Dad to go buy them the next day. Of course, by then someone had bought Frankincense. (What idiot only buys one out of a set?!?) So Piper Dad went ahead and bought them because the shop said they’d be getting more in. Of course, the shop never did them back in, because [Department 56](http://www.department56.com/) discontinued that line. Seems to me that this is exactly the reason we’ve got us an interwebs - to find this type of knick-knack. I’ve looked on eBay, but I don’t really get eBay so gave up. Can anyone give any suggestions on where I might look on-line? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/2 "2009-01-06T04:39:23Z")
[Does this help](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=department+56+three+wise+men)? ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/3 "2009-01-06T04:46:48Z")
[This](http://cgi.ebay.com/DEPT-56-Candle-Three-Wise-Men-1-of-3-Frankincense_W0QQitemZ300281233811QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDecorative_Collectibles?hash=item300281233811&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72:1205%7C66:2%7C65:12%7C39:1%7C240:1318%7C301:1%7C293:1%7C294:50)? ---
**Author:** ![Kkrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Kkrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kkrose)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/4 "2009-01-06T04:47:12Z")
[http://cgi.ebay.com/DEPT-56-Candle-Three-Wise-Men-1-of-3-Frankincense\_W0QQitemZ300281233811QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDecorative\_Collectibles?hash=item300281233811&\_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&\_trkparms=72%3A1205%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50](http://cgi.ebay.com/DEPT-56-Candle-Three-Wise-Men-1-of-3-Frankincense_W0QQitemZ300281233811QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDecorative_Collectibles?hash=item300281233811&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50)"]Here you go. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/5 "2009-01-06T05:02:20Z")
yes!! how did you guys find them? I spent some time searching on eBay and couldn’t find anything? ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/6 "2009-01-06T05:09:28Z")
I just did a search for “department 56 wise men”. “department 56 frankincense” would have worked too. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/7 "2009-01-06T05:20:30Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > I just did a search for “department 56 wise men”. “department 56 frankincense” would have worked too. Ah, Grasshopper! Once you have all three, you, too, may try to walk the Google rice paper without tearing … 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/8 "2009-01-06T05:59:24Z")
Do they have names allocated to them too, or are just gifts? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2009, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/9 "2009-01-06T09:59:12Z")
Just the gift name. If you check the crowns, you see the gift they represent. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2009, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/10 "2009-01-25T13:08:20Z")
woo-hoo! my third wise man arrived! (the Gold one, actually. when I reviewed the three pictures, I realised I had Frankincense and Myrrh, but not Gold). I have lined up a Christmas present for Mrs. Piper in January - 11 months early! that’s a new record! Thanks for your help, everyone. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/11 "2009-01-25T20:42:17Z")
> [@](#): > > Do they have names allocated to them too, or are just gifts? According to western European tradition, their names are Caspar (who brought frankincense), Melchior (who brought gold), and Balthasar (who brought myrhh). The original source, though, the Gospel of Matthew, doesn’t even say how many there were, much less their names. ---
**Author:** ![psiekier](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psiekier/32/116_2.png) [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/12 "2009-01-27T18:45:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > According to western European tradition, their names are Caspar (who brought frankincense), Melchior (who brought gold), and Balthasar (who brought myrhh). The original source, though, the Gospel of Matthew, doesn’t even say how many there were, much less their names. From [Eutycus’s SD Staff Report](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2204/whats-the-deal-with-the-three-wise-men): > [@](#): > > There were some early attempts at naming the wise men. One text refers to them as Hormizdah (King of Persia), Yazdegerd (King of Saba) and Perozadh (King of Sheba.) Another states their names as Hor, Basanter and Karsudan. However, the reigning western tradition shows up in a sixth century Greek text entitled _Excerpta Latina Barbari_, which calls them Gaspar (or Casper), Melchior and Balthasar. Tradition also depicts at least one of the kings as black, but that element didn’t show up until quite late in literature and even later in art. The NERV supercomputers in _Neon Genesis Evangelion_ are named after them as well. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2011, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-i-complete-my-set-of-wise-men/480041/13 "2011-12-05T01:14:38Z")
Just remembered - I meant to post to this thread back in December, 2009 - Mrs Piper was very excited to get Wise Man # 3 - they’ve now made their appearances two years running and this year will be year # 3.