| Show fie fefie to C P jg V ivor for a long loi a time february 11 14 1 1 has been the day for or sentiment sending awny away back in 1710 some lover chewed the lie end of his fits quill pen while writing his homemade home made valentine this very same valentine the lie oldest extant la Is one of many rare and charming valentines which form a part of the largest and oldest collection of valentines in the world owned by frank H baer of cleveland ohio there are more than 2000 valentines in the collection they range from tile the old german hand dono done 0 one e of 1710 to those of the time of our civil war when american valentines were heavy with paper lace and painted plush and first gave indications of becoming over ornate and factory made Valent valentines fries like mothers pies should be homemade home homo made to have the real flavor and in the beginning they were always individual and naive because the sender usually struggled over his paint box bos to execute a tiling thing of beauty for hh fits hearts desire germans made first valentines the oldest valentine Is s written in german on n a small parchment card the quatrain begins allebes ln then lien the words are obscured by tit the dust dual of time these two words are nil all the writing that can be discerned but theres a sign language around the border hearts and turtledoves turtle does doves drawn with a crow cro quill pen dipped in india ink the eternal symbol an inner card very daintily done shows tulips surrounding a heart which Is set on a high hill turtledoves Turtle doves hearts and tu tulips lips have been tile the hall mark of a passionate valentine for more than two centuries and they may still be seen on many lauy of the 1929 valentines valentines seemed to have been first made in germany but it was the english people who took to the idea with determination the sturdy anglo sax ons stolid on the surface have sentiment under the skin and the fourteenth of february was a moment to release their uncorked emotions these valentines were really love letters let raised to the nth nt h degree ogree of f homemade art hand painted hand pricher hand pasted there was a certain typo type of valen title tine tile the aspiring youth of tile early nineteenth century could buy these had pictures engraved but the buyer was to color them aud and there wits was a place tor for the love message to be written perhaps the youths did not want anyone not even the shopkeepers to know the depths of their private feelings I 1 n s so they made up their own love letters usually in stumbling verse and also used paint and brush to color tile the picture what a vivid blue the sailors pants acquired in tile the valentine sent fly by au experienced experience lover maybe albeit a novice painter the ribbon on tile the |
