A belly-busting dinner has been a central part of Christmas Day for centuries – and you might be surprised by how much has (and hasn't) changed over the past 150 years or so, since Christmas was made an official unpaid holiday in 1870. Here we step back in time to take a look at the plates of Christmases past, from the early 1800s to the present day.

Click or scroll through our gallery and feast your eyes on some of the oldest images of Christmas meals that exist today.