Tartan design by Carol Martin

The common custom of placing "X" on envelopes, notes and at the bottom of letters to mean kisses dates back to the Middle Ages, when a Christian cross was drawn on documents or letters to mean sincerity, faith, and honesty. A kiss was then placed upon the cross, by the signer as a display of their sworn oath. The costume of using an "O" for hugs has a more murky origin.

Tartan design by Victor Spence

In the 1700s, something recognizable as a form of the modern greeting card began to be seen for Valentine’s Day. Early cards were handmade, and usually delivered secretly by slipping them under a door.  York Castle Museum has in their collection what is believed to be the oldest printed Valentine’s Day card in existence. Printed in London in 1797, it is hand colored and features elaborate floral patterns, cupids, doves, and a lace pattern.

Tartan design by Dr Michael Robert Young, the Baron of New Abbey

A traditional Scottish love token, a Luckenbooth brooch or ring is in the form of two intertwined hearts. The name comes from the luckenbooths of Edinburgh where jewelry and trinkets used to be sold.

Tartan design by Carol Martin

By the 1840s, the notion of Valentine’s Day as a holiday to celebrate romantic love had become popular, and Victorians in particular, enjoyed the giving of elaborate cards and other gifts. During this period, Richard Cadbury, made use of the latest improvements in chocolate-making techniques to create many more varieties of "eating chocolate" and started selling them in beautifully decorated boxes that he himself designed. Chocolate has a been a popular Valentine's gift ever since!

Tartan design by Carol Martin

The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret.

Tartan design by Scotweb

"Ay me! For aught that I could ever read, Could ever hear by tale or history, The course of true love never did run smooth." ~A Midsummer NIght's Dream, William Shakespeare This tartan was inspired by the colours of the pre-Raphaelite painting, "The Pained Heart (Sigh No More, Ladies)" by Arthur Hughes, 1868.

Tartan design by Kinloch Anderson

The language of flowers, sometimes called floriography, is a means of cryptological communication through the use or arrangement of flowers. Meanings and magic has been attributed to flowers, plants, and trees for thousands of years, and some form of floriography has been practiced in traditional cultures throughout Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Interest in floriography increased in Victorian England and in the United States during the 19th century.