Dresden Christstollen is supposed to symbolise the swaddled Baby Jesus and was first baked around 1450. According to church dogma, the Dresden Christstollen was not allowed to contain anything other than flour, yeast and water. Butter and milk were forbidden. But Elector Ernst of Saxony was a gourmet, so in 1467 he petitioned the Pope to lift the "butter ban". The Holy Father relented and sent a letter which has gone down in history as the "butter missive". In return for payment of a fine, bakers would be permitted to add milk and butter to the stollen cake "with a clear conscience and God's blessing". The letter marked the start of the battle among the master bakers to see who could bake the finest stollen.