The History of
Traditional Valentine's Day Gifts
February 14th is the most romantic day of the year. Many
women (& a few men) look forward, with anticipation, to receiving tokens of
love from their sweethearts on this holiday. Have you ever wondered where
our traditional Valentine's Day gifts, like cards, flowers & heart-shaped
boxes of chocolates, originated? Or who came up with the
ideas?
Let's take a look...
GREETING
CARDS
According to legend, the very first Valentine's Day "card" was
written by St. Valentine
himself, who was a third century Roman priest. When
Emperor Claudius II outlawed marriage for young men, believing it would make
them better soldiers, it is alleged that Valentine felt the decree was so unfair
that he secretly performed wedding ceremonies for young lovers. But as
soon as Claudius found out, he imprisoned St. Valentine & ordered him to be
put to death.
While in confinement, Valentine fell in love with his jailor's
daughter. Just before he died on February 14th, around 270 AD, St. V
penned an affectionate letter to the woman with whom he was smitten, signing it,
"From your Valentine" - an expression we still use in our modern Valentine's Day
cards.
CHOCOLATES IN HEART-SHAPED
BOXES
Throughout history, all the way back to the Aztecs, people have
believed chocolate to be a powerful aphrodisiac. Modern science reveals
that it was, & is, all in their heads. Chocolate does, however, contain
phenylethylamine (PEA), the same chemical the human brain releases during
emotional pleasure, or while experiencing feelings of being "in love."
According to industry statistics, women purchase 75% of
chocolates sold each year, showing they have a greater affinity to the candy
than men. But the male population seems to have figured that out centuries
ago, when chocolate became a token of a man's love for the lady he desired,
hoping the sweet confections would induce the same passion in her towards
him.
The
first heart-shaped chocolate box didn't appear until 1861, when Englishman
Richard Cadbury
created it to package his candy for Valentine's Day.
RED
ROSES
In
Roman mythology, it is said that Cupid
was carrying a vase of sweet nectar to the gods on Mt. Olympus, when he
accidentally spilled some on the ground. From that spot of spilled nectar
grew beautiful, fragrant red roses which became the symbol of his mother Venus,
the goddess of love.
Many early cultures decorated their wedding ceremonies &
attire with red roses. It is through this practice over the years that the
crimson flowers evolved as tokens of deep love & fidelity. As the
tradition of exchanging roses as gifts of affection came into prevalence, the
red rose naturally became the flower of choice for sending the strongest message
of love on Valentine's Day. Click
here to learn meanings of other rose colors.
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Tokens of
Love
Gift
History
For
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About
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Gift
History
For
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About
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V-Day fun for
singles.
