Legends
The St. Valentine of legend is usually described as a priest or bishop who lived in the third century after Christ. According to one legend, he was a Roman priest with a special feeling for young people. When the Roman Empire needed soldiers, Emperor Claudius II decreed that no one could marry or become engaged. Valentine defied the Emperor's decree and secretly married a number of young couples. He was arrested, imprisoned, and put to death.
Another legend tells of a Valentine who was seized for helping Christians who were being persecuted by Claudius II. This Valentine was especially friendly with the jailer's blind daughter and, by a miracle, restored her sight. The morning of his execution, he is said to have sent her a farewell message signed, "From your Valentine." He was beheaded on February 14, and legend says that when he was buried, a pink almond tree near his grave burst into bloom as a symbol of lasting love.
February 14 was the eve of an important Roman festival, the Lupercalia. On this evening, Roman youths drew the names of girls who would be their partners during the festival.
Valentine's execution may have formed part of the entertainment during one of these festivals. Roman rulers often made a display of their cruelty toward the Christians who were drawing people away from the older gods.
The Lupercalia was considered a spring festival because the calendar of that time showed February occuring later than it does today. It is thought by some that this festival honored Faunus, a god of herds and crops. However, since the origin of the festival is so ancient, even scholars of the last century before Christ were never sure.
Records show that Mark Antony, an important Roman, was master of the Luperci College of Priests. Each year, the Luperci priests gathered on the Palatine at the cave of Lupercal. According to legend, Romulus and Remus, founders of Rome, had been nursed by a mother wolf. In Latin, lupus is the word for wolf. At the door of the cave, several goats and a dog were sacrificed. Two youths of noble birth were brought forward, and their foreheads were touched with blood and wiped off with sheepswool dipped in milk. The two youths were supposed to laugh and run through the Roman streets, lashing about them with goatskin thongs. The streets would be crowded with young women, for a lash of the sacred thongs was believed to make them better able to bear children. The goatskin thongs were the februa, the lashing the februatio, both stemming from a Latin word meaning to purify. From it comes our name for February.
From the teachings of Christ, a new religion was born, and by the fourth century A.D., the church fathers did their utmost to stamp out everything pagan. Unable to abolish some of the pagan festivals that people loved, they assigned them Christian names.
The Lupercalia became St. Valentine's Day, and the ancient meaning of a celebration of mating was attached to the saint's name.
Another legend tells of a Valentine who was seized for helping Christians who were being persecuted by Claudius II. This Valentine was especially friendly with the jailer's blind daughter and, by a miracle, restored her sight. The morning of his execution, he is said to have sent her a farewell message signed, "From your Valentine." He was beheaded on February 14, and legend says that when he was buried, a pink almond tree near his grave burst into bloom as a symbol of lasting love.
February 14 was the eve of an important Roman festival, the Lupercalia. On this evening, Roman youths drew the names of girls who would be their partners during the festival.
Valentine's execution may have formed part of the entertainment during one of these festivals. Roman rulers often made a display of their cruelty toward the Christians who were drawing people away from the older gods.
The Lupercalia was considered a spring festival because the calendar of that time showed February occuring later than it does today. It is thought by some that this festival honored Faunus, a god of herds and crops. However, since the origin of the festival is so ancient, even scholars of the last century before Christ were never sure.
Records show that Mark Antony, an important Roman, was master of the Luperci College of Priests. Each year, the Luperci priests gathered on the Palatine at the cave of Lupercal. According to legend, Romulus and Remus, founders of Rome, had been nursed by a mother wolf. In Latin, lupus is the word for wolf. At the door of the cave, several goats and a dog were sacrificed. Two youths of noble birth were brought forward, and their foreheads were touched with blood and wiped off with sheepswool dipped in milk. The two youths were supposed to laugh and run through the Roman streets, lashing about them with goatskin thongs. The streets would be crowded with young women, for a lash of the sacred thongs was believed to make them better able to bear children. The goatskin thongs were the februa, the lashing the februatio, both stemming from a Latin word meaning to purify. From it comes our name for February.
From the teachings of Christ, a new religion was born, and by the fourth century A.D., the church fathers did their utmost to stamp out everything pagan. Unable to abolish some of the pagan festivals that people loved, they assigned them Christian names.
The Lupercalia became St. Valentine's Day, and the ancient meaning of a celebration of mating was attached to the saint's name.
Countries & Customs
During the Middle Ages, at the Feast of St. Valentine, a spring festival took place in Italy. Young people gathered in groves and gardens to listen to love poetry and romantic music. However, the custom died out and there has been no real Valentine's Day celebration in Italy for many years.
In France, there were popular forms of pairing off. However, some of the celebrations left many hard feelings and often led to trouble, so the French government banned the pairing customs in 1776. Some of the customs continued into the 1880's, but were completely banned by the government, and thus, St. Valentine's Day disappeared in France.
Austria, Hungary, and Germany also had St. Valentine's Day courtship customs that have long since vanished. Some of the priests in these countries discouraged them by having the young men draw the names of saints instead of the names of girls. During the year, they were supposed to model themselves after these saints. This custom was not very popular.
In the British Isles, youths were drawing names for "valentines" or sweethearts on February 14. During the 17th century, while the Puritans were strong in England, St. Valentine's Day was banned. However, in 1660, Charles II revived the holiday.
Since World War II, shops in Germany have stocked valentines for American servicemen stationed there. Thus, there has been a renewed interest in the holiday in some parts of Germany, Austria, and Spain.
It is mainly in the United States and Britain that St. Valentine's Day has been kept alive. In both countries, people of all ages enjoy Valentine parties and the exchange of valentines.
In France, there were popular forms of pairing off. However, some of the celebrations left many hard feelings and often led to trouble, so the French government banned the pairing customs in 1776. Some of the customs continued into the 1880's, but were completely banned by the government, and thus, St. Valentine's Day disappeared in France.
Austria, Hungary, and Germany also had St. Valentine's Day courtship customs that have long since vanished. Some of the priests in these countries discouraged them by having the young men draw the names of saints instead of the names of girls. During the year, they were supposed to model themselves after these saints. This custom was not very popular.
In the British Isles, youths were drawing names for "valentines" or sweethearts on February 14. During the 17th century, while the Puritans were strong in England, St. Valentine's Day was banned. However, in 1660, Charles II revived the holiday.
Since World War II, shops in Germany have stocked valentines for American servicemen stationed there. Thus, there has been a renewed interest in the holiday in some parts of Germany, Austria, and Spain.
It is mainly in the United States and Britain that St. Valentine's Day has been kept alive. In both countries, people of all ages enjoy Valentine parties and the exchange of valentines.
Valentines in the Old World
Valentine was once a word that meant sweetheart. Only gradually did it come to mean a message of love on a piece of paper.
In 15th century England, a French war prisoner, Duke Charles of Orleans, whiled away his time in the Tower of London writing romantic poems. One poem translated into modern English, begins like this:
Wilt thou be mine? dear love, reply,
Sweetly consent, or else deny;
Whisper softly, none shall know,
Wilt thou be mine, love? ay or no?
Margery Brews wrote the oldest known valentine in letter form. It was sent to John Paston, and dated 1477. For the next few hundred years, some of England's finest writers wrote valentine poems.
On Valentine's Day in 1667, Samuel Pepys described in his famous Diary a kind of valentine received by his wife. On a sheet of blue paper her name was written in gold letters by a little boy. This was a forerunner of later valentines.
A hundred years later, it had become an English custom to leave a valentine love letter at a sweetheart's door. Meanwhile, religious valentines had begun to appear. They were usually made by nuns, and they were cut in lacy patterns and decorated with painted flowers.
Most of the valentines were sentimental, but others were comic or even insulting to misers or spinsters.
Lacy valentines of the Victorian era were made on delicate paper lace and pasted with handpainted motifs - cupids, birds, flowers, hearts, and darts. Some valentines were enhanced with silk, satin, chiffon, net, or real lace.
In 15th century England, a French war prisoner, Duke Charles of Orleans, whiled away his time in the Tower of London writing romantic poems. One poem translated into modern English, begins like this:
Sweetly consent, or else deny;
Whisper softly, none shall know,
Wilt thou be mine, love? ay or no?
Margery Brews wrote the oldest known valentine in letter form. It was sent to John Paston, and dated 1477. For the next few hundred years, some of England's finest writers wrote valentine poems.
On Valentine's Day in 1667, Samuel Pepys described in his famous Diary a kind of valentine received by his wife. On a sheet of blue paper her name was written in gold letters by a little boy. This was a forerunner of later valentines.
A hundred years later, it had become an English custom to leave a valentine love letter at a sweetheart's door. Meanwhile, religious valentines had begun to appear. They were usually made by nuns, and they were cut in lacy patterns and decorated with painted flowers.
Most of the valentines were sentimental, but others were comic or even insulting to misers or spinsters.
Lacy valentines of the Victorian era were made on delicate paper lace and pasted with handpainted motifs - cupids, birds, flowers, hearts, and darts. Some valentines were enhanced with silk, satin, chiffon, net, or real lace.
Valentines Cross the Atlantic
On Valentine's Day in 1629, John Winthrop wrote a letter to his wife before leaving England for the New World. It began, "My sweet wife" and ended:
Thou must be my
valentine for none
hath challenged me.
It was a century or more before American valentines first appeared due to the Puritan strongholds, and the fact that people had all they could do to keep themselves and their families alive.
These first valentines were handmade, with hours of work lavished on them, and they were treasured and handed down in families. Most of these valentines were sent by men, but now and then a girl sent one, sometimes in reply to one she had received.
The valentines might be decorated in watercolor or in delicate pen and ink. Acrostic valentines had verses in which the first letter of the lines spelled out the loved one's name. Cutout valentines were made by folding the paper several times and then cutting out a lacelike design with small, sharp, pointed scissors. Pinprick valentines also had the look of paper lace. These were made by pricking tiny holes in paper with a pin or needle. Theorem or Poonah valentines had designs that were painted through a stencil cut in oil paper, a style that came from the Orient. Rubus valentines had verses in which tiny pictures took the place of some of the words. Puzzle Purse valentines were a puzzle to read and to refold, and fraktur valentines had ornamental lettering in the style of illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages.
valentine for none
hath challenged me.
It was a century or more before American valentines first appeared due to the Puritan strongholds, and the fact that people had all they could do to keep themselves and their families alive.
These first valentines were handmade, with hours of work lavished on them, and they were treasured and handed down in families. Most of these valentines were sent by men, but now and then a girl sent one, sometimes in reply to one she had received.
The valentines might be decorated in watercolor or in delicate pen and ink. Acrostic valentines had verses in which the first letter of the lines spelled out the loved one's name. Cutout valentines were made by folding the paper several times and then cutting out a lacelike design with small, sharp, pointed scissors. Pinprick valentines also had the look of paper lace. These were made by pricking tiny holes in paper with a pin or needle. Theorem or Poonah valentines had designs that were painted through a stencil cut in oil paper, a style that came from the Orient. Rubus valentines had verses in which tiny pictures took the place of some of the words. Puzzle Purse valentines were a puzzle to read and to refold, and fraktur valentines had ornamental lettering in the style of illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages.
In 1848, Esther Howland, a young woman in Worcester, Massachusetts, started a venture that did a great deal to keep the holiday alive. Her father was a stationer, and Esther decided to make valentines by cutting up some lacy envelopes, and pasting bits of the lace and little colored pictures onto sheets of paper.
True-Love Tokens
Hearts, cupids, birds, and flowers have been Valentine symbols for centuries. One token which has slipped into the background is the true-love knot. With no beginning and no end, the love knot consists of graceful loops, sometimes in the form of hearts. On the loops are endless love messages that can be read by turning the knot about. A young man would hang his token on his true love's doorknob, slipping a love letter under her door.
A popular 19th century love token was a paper hand. It is a symbol of courtship because a young man proposed by asking a lady "for her hand."
Tiny paper gloves were also popular, and real gloves had long been a favorite valentine gift, especially in the British Isles.
Costly jewels were also given by wealthy noblemen and others gave what they could. Shoestrings, silk stockings, and garters were also given as tokens of love.
Many sailors made a hobby of scrimshaw - scratching or carving designs on pieces of tusk, bone, or a foreign wood. Hearts, flowers, leaves, and a pair of doves were all popular as designs, and somewhere on the token was usually a date and the name of a woman.
These charming Valentine love tokens have lost their meaning or were replaced with articles made by machines. Today people are more likely to express their love with gifts of candy, flowers, jewelry, or perfume. Usually the gift is given by the boy or man, but sometimes a couple exchange tokens. Also, gifts are given to a favorite relative or friend of either sex. Large or small, any gift given with love expresses the spirit of the holiday.
A popular 19th century love token was a paper hand. It is a symbol of courtship because a young man proposed by asking a lady "for her hand."
Tiny paper gloves were also popular, and real gloves had long been a favorite valentine gift, especially in the British Isles.
Costly jewels were also given by wealthy noblemen and others gave what they could. Shoestrings, silk stockings, and garters were also given as tokens of love.
Many sailors made a hobby of scrimshaw - scratching or carving designs on pieces of tusk, bone, or a foreign wood. Hearts, flowers, leaves, and a pair of doves were all popular as designs, and somewhere on the token was usually a date and the name of a woman.
These charming Valentine love tokens have lost their meaning or were replaced with articles made by machines. Today people are more likely to express their love with gifts of candy, flowers, jewelry, or perfume. Usually the gift is given by the boy or man, but sometimes a couple exchange tokens. Also, gifts are given to a favorite relative or friend of either sex. Large or small, any gift given with love expresses the spirit of the holiday.
Cupid
Cupid is a mischievous, winged child, armed with darts or a quiver of arrows. His purpose is to pierce hearts, and he is the god of love, and a favorite symbol for Valentine party decorations, candy boxes, or greetings.
Long before there was a Valentine's Day, Cupid played a major part in the ancient Greek and Roman celebrations dedicated to love and lovers. Named Eros by the Greeks, the young god was the son and companion of Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty. Among the Romans the same deity was known as Venus, and her son as Cupid, the name familiar to us today.
By either name, Cupid was a symbol of passionate, tender, or playful love. His arrows were invisible, his targets the hearts of mortals or gods alike. The victim would become aware of having been shot by falling hopelessly, and helplessly, in love.
Like fashions in dress or jewelry, fashions in valentines change. However, whether hovering in the background or playing a starring role, Cupid endures. He, perhaps more than any other single symbol, conveys the light, teasing spirit of St. Valentine's Day.
Long before there was a Valentine's Day, Cupid played a major part in the ancient Greek and Roman celebrations dedicated to love and lovers. Named Eros by the Greeks, the young god was the son and companion of Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty. Among the Romans the same deity was known as Venus, and her son as Cupid, the name familiar to us today.
By either name, Cupid was a symbol of passionate, tender, or playful love. His arrows were invisible, his targets the hearts of mortals or gods alike. The victim would become aware of having been shot by falling hopelessly, and helplessly, in love.
Like fashions in dress or jewelry, fashions in valentines change. However, whether hovering in the background or playing a starring role, Cupid endures. He, perhaps more than any other single symbol, conveys the light, teasing spirit of St. Valentine's Day.
Valentine Love Birds
Among the birds found on valentines, doves have long been favorites - a pair of doves or a single dove, bearing a message. The dove was sacred to Venus and other love deities. Also, from the time of Noah, doves had served as messengers.
Hearts and Sweethearts
In the language of symbols, a red or pink heart, pierced with an arrow, spells Valentine's Day. It is a basic symbol of the holiday of love and romance.
Giving one's heart or joining it to someone else's have been valentine themes for centuries.
The heart is also a favorite shape for valentine gifts and goodies. Heart-shaped pins, lockets, earrings, and pendants are popular gifts. There are also heart-shaped cakes, cookies, candies, and lavish red satin heart-shaped boxes, topped with flowers. The shape of the heart is the shape of the holiday.
Giving one's heart or joining it to someone else's have been valentine themes for centuries.
The heart is also a favorite shape for valentine gifts and goodies. Heart-shaped pins, lockets, earrings, and pendants are popular gifts. There are also heart-shaped cakes, cookies, candies, and lavish red satin heart-shaped boxes, topped with flowers. The shape of the heart is the shape of the holiday.
Roses, Lace, and Colors
No one flower by itself stands for Valentine's Day, but a single blossom, a bouquet, or a garland of flowers combines with hearts or cupids to express the essence of the holiday.
However, from the time of Solomon, the flower most closely linked with love has been the rose. It was sacred to Venus and connected with the name of Cupid.
On valentines of yesterday and today, the rose, usually a red or pink one, holds a place of honour at the side of Cupid.
Lace, so much a part of the romantic holiday, came into being as something lovely to look at rather than something useful. Paper lace was probably first made on the European continent.
Today, around Valentine's Day, paper lace is still with us, expressing to perfection the frilly nature of the holiday.
Red is a symbol of warmth and feeling. The color of the human heart, it has been a favorite hue for the hearts on valentines of the past and present. In sending roses to say, "I love you," the first choice is often red. A symbol of love at its most romantic, the red rose graced early valentines as it does today.
Pink, a mixture of red and white, tints roses, rosebuds, and other blossoms on many valentines, old and new.
White, the absence of all color, stands for purity. Since Valentine's Day is dedicated to courtship, perhaps the bridal veil helped inspire the use of white lace on valentines. White is also a symbol of faith - on Valentine's Day, a faith between two who love each other.
However, from the time of Solomon, the flower most closely linked with love has been the rose. It was sacred to Venus and connected with the name of Cupid.
On valentines of yesterday and today, the rose, usually a red or pink one, holds a place of honour at the side of Cupid.
Lace, so much a part of the romantic holiday, came into being as something lovely to look at rather than something useful. Paper lace was probably first made on the European continent.
Today, around Valentine's Day, paper lace is still with us, expressing to perfection the frilly nature of the holiday.
Red is a symbol of warmth and feeling. The color of the human heart, it has been a favorite hue for the hearts on valentines of the past and present. In sending roses to say, "I love you," the first choice is often red. A symbol of love at its most romantic, the red rose graced early valentines as it does today.
Pink, a mixture of red and white, tints roses, rosebuds, and other blossoms on many valentines, old and new.
White, the absence of all color, stands for purity. Since Valentine's Day is dedicated to courtship, perhaps the bridal veil helped inspire the use of white lace on valentines. White is also a symbol of faith - on Valentine's Day, a faith between two who love each other.
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Heart-shaped chocolates, and tiny pastel hard-candy hearts, printed with little mottoes are still a favorite among both the old and the young. Heart-shaped candies, cookies, cakes, ice cream, jellies, and puddings are sweets that seem to be the perfect choice for a holiday such as Valentine's Day.
The Heart Knows
You stepped into my heart,
turning it from stone,
and I will always love you,
for now I'll never be alone.
Your kisses brought out the passion in me,
yet it was your gentle words,
whispered softly in my ear,
that made my heart believe.
Near or far from you,
my heart is full of love,
for you taught me to give,
and accept my life as given from above.
For God in His Wisdom,
knew that my heart needed you.
to show me that a stone can change,
and open it's treasures, I thought few.
Your arms surround me,
protecting and caring, even in my sleep,
for a love like this,
is oh, so very deep.
A heart of stone,
opened by one,
now is free to trust and give,
carrying the love that you've begun.
by C. Webber
© January 13,1999
Soulmates
I have a delicious secret,
and there is no fear.
Once in a lifetime,
one meets another,
who has been created
out of the same mold.
I have searched the sea,
the mountains,
the rivers,
and the sky,
trying to find myself
in another.
Once I knew who I was,
and then I lost myself;
but he was presented to me
as a gift from God.
I know that he is a part of me,
and how could I have fear
knowing that he is me and I am him?
We are the same, yet different.
We live in each other's hearts and souls,
We know each other's minds and spirits.
This delicious secret is ours alone,
and even with a secret, there is no fear.
Love is the reason,
for with love there is no fear.
by C. Webber
©1998
Song Playing: Valentine
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