Early Valentines
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Sending special letters for Valentine's day probably dates from the mid-18th century. We have a number of examples of early Valentines in our collection.
Rebus card, object number: OB1995.263
The oldest Valentine in our collection dates from about 1790. It is known as a Rebus or a ‘puzzle purse’. It is a single large sheet of paper folded to a smaller size. The puzzle is to unfold it in the right way to read the verses handwritten on the folds, and see the small illustrations. Even more of a puzzle is to be able to fold it back up again!
One of the verses on the card
reads:
My dear the heart which
you behold
Will break when you the
same unfold
Even so my heart with
lovesick pain
Sure
wounded is and breaks in twain.
Learning link
Download education resource based around this Valentine card (PDF, 124KB)
