Tree-topper
It is common to place a large star or angel at the top of the Christmas tree. Hans Christian Andersen's story of The Fir-Tree describes the decoration of a Danish Christmas tree:
- On one branch there hung little nets cut out of colored paper, and each net was filled with sugarplums; and among the other boughs gilded apples and walnuts were suspended, looking as though they had grown there, and little blue and white tapers were placed among the leaves. Dolls that looked for all the world like men—the Tree had never beheld such before—were seen among the foliage, and at the very top a large star of gold tinsel was fixed.
In American English, this is called a "tree-topper". Glass spire-like ornaments are popular. Plastic tree toppers are often electrified and, once connected with the tree's strings of colored lights, glow from within. Following WWII, various Christmas icons, such as Santa Claus, were introduced as electrified tree toppers. The angel and star however remained the preferred topper.
Read more about this topic: Christmas Ornament