When wandering through the greeting card section looking
for the perfect heart and verse to give your loved one, have you ever wondered
about the origin of the traditional heart shape associated with love and Valentine's
day?
You already know that the origins of Valentine's day
itself goes back to the ancient Romans and their festival of Lupercalia , a sensuous affair where
young women put their names in a big pot and young men simply drew out a name.
According to Glenn Church's 2008 article, "The man did not need to ask for
a date, plan a dinner setting or a movie. Just draw a name and off to
fornicate."
That rite survived until the fifth century AD when Pope
Gelasius I tried to get rid of the pagan festival by superimposing a religious
day honoring Saint Valentine who was martyred on February 14, 269 AD.
THE
SHAPE OF VALENTINES TO COME
While honoring a beheaded saint was somewhat of a
buzz-kill, it didn't do away with the celebration, just toned it down. And it has
nothing to do with the heart shape we use for valentines.
So off I went in search of the real story (which, of course, doesn't exist). However, there are a
number of intriguing theories.
● Aristotle wrote that the human heart was the center of
all human emotions, and it is certainly one of the major body parts that sends
visceral signals regarding our feelings and moods. And if you've ever been in
love, or heartbroken, you know you definitely feel it in your heart. That could
support the connection between the heart and passion.
Unfortunately, the human heart doesn't really resemble
the Valentine's day heart. In those days, at least some people knew what a
human heart looked like and probably didn't associate it with love.
● Another suggestion is that the heart was the ancient symbol
for Dionysus, Greek god of wine and debauchery. His sign was the leopard spot
similar to a heart symbol, and people wore leopard skins in homage to the god.
I don't know. A leopard spot? I saw most resemblance to a
heart shape in this plaque, but grapes were far more predominant.
● Both cupid's bow and the head of his arrows are thought
by some as the origin of the valentine heart. Cupid was the Roman god of
physical love making and classically shown shooting arrows at people to make
them fall desperately in love...and he never misses. His name in Latin means
desire.
Both a curved bow and some arrowheads do resemble a heart
shape in the rough.
● Others claim the origins of the heart shape, as related
to love, comes from the similarity to human body parts such as the shape of the
back, the buttocks, breasts, and other parts which I won't mention in mixed
company. Some of the similarities depend of which way your turn the heart. Of
course, the use of an arrowhead to pierce a heart has "strong male
overtones".
● Wikipedia states that the first association of the
heart shape with romantic love occurs in 1250 in a miniature in a manuscript of
the French Roman de la poire
(National Library, France). However, I found more references than any other for
the next theory, which takes us back to the seventh century BC.
● During the seventh century BC, the city-sate of Cyrene
was known to trade in the rare, and now extinct, plant silphium. At that time
it was a well known herb widely use in the Mediterranean area for spicing food.
It grew only along the Libyan coast where the climate is now considerably
drier.
So what's the connection between siphium and the heart
shapes used to depict romantic love?
Well, it was also used as an abortive agent for women.
The day after sex, the woman would eat the silphium plant or its seeds. And its
seeds were shaped like hearts.
The plant was commemorated on Cyrene coins, such
as the ones shown below. It's quite plausible that the shape of the seed pod
became related to sex and love.
Indirect evidence in later literature strongly indicates
it had highly abortive properties. By Nero's time, Pliny the Younger writes
that it was extremely difficult to find because the Emperor had procured the
total available supply.
AND
THAT'S HOW THE VALENTINE GOT IS SHAPE.
Resources
http://voices.yahoo.com/origins-valentines-day-heart-symbol-849689.html
http://www.kingdombaptist.org/the-origin-of-valentines-day-and-the-heart-symbol/
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/recycled/2007/02/the_shape_of_my_heart.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine%27s_Day
http://voices.yahoo.com/origins-valentines-day-heart-symbol-849689.html
http://www.kingdombaptist.org/the-origin-of-valentines-day-and-the-heart-symbol/
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/recycled/2007/02/the_shape_of_my_heart.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine%27s_Day
Thank you, Ann. Very interesting. I especially loved the Ancient Roman tradition. Those Romans knew how to live and love!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ann. Very interesting. I especially loved the Ancient Roman tradition. Those Romans knew how to live and love!
ReplyDeleteSorry, Ann, I inadvertently took over the column for a short while today, When I saw mine posted immediately e-mailed Marianne to take it down. Don't know how I screwed up like that, since I'd have sworn I hit save. You post, as always, was very interesting....
ReplyDeleteNero must have been very virile...and horny...to need the entire supply of silphium.
ReplyDeleteI never knew that Cupid meant desire...just thought he was a symbol of romance.
Thanks for the info!
Loved the post, Ann, very interesting! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post, Ann. My, my, abortive elements in that seed. Wow! Way before our time.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing that we know so much but aren't sure how the heart shape came to be. I vote on the last theory since the shape of the heart was clearly visible in their money and it sounds like that plant made them very wealthy!
ReplyDeleteThanks for teaching us about the heart symbol and the holiday!