Affairs of the Heart, Collecting Valentines

Affairs of the Heart

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, florists and chocolatiers are readying for their biggest selling season of the year, and fine dining establishments are squeezing in every two-top table for which they can find an extra nook.  If food, chocolate and flowers are getting old for you and your sweetheart, check out how lovers in the not-so-distant past memorialized their feelings on this world-wide holiday.

From speculative beginnings in Pagan ritual and Catholic sainthood, St. Valentine’s Day was officially declared as February 14 by Pope Gelasius at the end of the 5th Century.  The evolution from church holiday to romantic intent is uncertain, but the earliest known Valentine remaining in existence is a poem  written by an imprisoned Duke of Orleans to his wife in 1415.  Throughout the Renaissance and into the development of the western world, Valentine’s Day became an opportunity to openly avow one’s deepest heartfelt sentiments.  Early paper Valentines may have been influenced by Swiss and Germans in the 16th Century, who brought their customs to the new world, particularly as they settled the areas in and around Pennsylvania.  Scherenschnitte was the custom of paper-cutting and drawing in a symmetrical pattern, commonly used to create love letters and Valentines.

For Americana collectors, Valentines from the late 18th and early 19th Century, while rare, are available and may appeal to both romantic and historic interests.  Some collectors find satisfaction in utilizing census and other records to trace maker and recipient.  Additional genealogical information, while providing interesting historical context, also adds to the monetary value of the object.  Another significant factor that affects value is condition:  tears along fold lines are not uncommon, and acid staining from original frames is often an issue.  Terrific details and robust colors can dramatically affect the value of the earliest paper Valentines.

With paper a scarce resource for settlers moving west, husbands and fathers sometimes used the construction of utilitarian objects as an opportunity to express their love and commitment to their wives and daughters.  During the mid-19th Century, stylized heart motifs can be found on everything from kitchen utensils to furniture.  What better way to epitomize his sentiment, than to work a simple design or symbol of affection into an object his love would be using each and every day.  Later into the 19th and early 20th Century, the industry of valentines began to grow, with options provided by skillful entrepreneurs including weavers who incorporated the symbol into coverlets and island women who crafted delicate shell art for sailors.  A popular folk art example are steel shoe mats that were made from sheet steel, bent into interconnected 1” hearts.

During the Victorian era, handmade gave way to hand-embellishment of manufactured valentines.  Combined with a newly-affordable penny post, the mailing of greeting cards was made possible for anyone who wanted.  The resulting boom helped to create and grow some very large and successful companies, including Hallmark and American Greetings.  These manufactured examples, with personalization, are very affordable to collect.

This Valentine’s Day, broaden your sweetheart’s horizons and forget the same-old, same-old.  Instead, consider a vintage or antique sentiment that will truly be cherished for a lifetime (or two).  For more information on collecting vintage and antique valentines, visit www.garths.com/collecting.

Sidebar:

For years we have collected paper Valentines, as well as early bookplates and fraktur (birth and marriage records).  For us, there is little comparison between a mass-produced card and an early example of deep personal sentiment, hand drawn on such a precious commodity as paper; and complete with delicate fold lines from decades of preservation.  A wonderful book on the subject of early paper gifts sums up our philosophy.  From “The Gift is Small The Love Is Great,” by Frederick Weiser:  “...they are filled with a combination of color, whimsy, piety and design that provide a remarkable window onto the soul of America’s largest cultural minority.”

This Scherenschnitte (German for “scissor cuts”) dated 1830 and made for Barbara Flink is composed entirely in German and includes delicate folded cutwork, pinpricked and watercolor detail.  Found in a 19th Century book about 8 years ago, it is believed to have origins in Ohio.  Private collection, Est.: $3,000 - $4,000.

Bookplates were personalized designs often drawn by schoolmasters for the identification of a book or as a reward of merit for students at year-end.  This bookplate was drawn by a scrivener and schoolmaster, Philip Mumbauer from Pennsylvania (active 1811-1841).  Undoubtedly influenced by Valentine designs, it was likely intended as an acknowledgement of a fond relationship between teacher and student.  Private collection, Est.: $2,500 - $3,500.

This late 18th Century footstool or trivet with probably origins in Pennsylvania still bears its original paint.  Wonderfully embellished with hearts and diamonds on the apron, as well as stylized hearts on the top surface, the sweet design clearly transcends it’s utilitarian purpose.  In a wonderful state of preservation, it likely represented a very sentimental value to those who passed it down from generation to generation.  Private collection, Est.:  $4,500 - $6,500.

This hand-wrought iron trivet from Southeast Pennsylvania was formed in a stylized design known as “lazy heart.”  The romantic intention of the 18th Century maker is clear:  with delicate incised decoration and careful construction, this is no ordinary trivet.  Private collection, Est.:  $2,500 - $3,500.

By the Victorian era, industrialization enables the mass production of paper Valentines.  Examples such as this paved the way for the greeting card industry as we know it today.  Victorian paper valentines can be collected very affordably, with prices ranging from $10 - $200 dollars for most examples.