FACTS ABOUT VALENTINES
1. The real Saint Valentine didn't have much fun. Nobody is even sure if he was Valentine of Rome, or Valentine of Terni. Neither found love - just a beating and decapitation by the Romans.
2. Can you guess who gets most valentines? It's teachers.
3. In 1797, a British publisher issued The Young Man's Valentine Writer. It was full of suggested sentimental verses for the young lover unable to compose his own.
4. What started the card craze? The fall in postal rates in the 19th century – the Penny Post - got English Victorians sending cards by mail.
5. The post meant you could send anonymously. Is this why there was a sudden appearance of racy verse from the otherwise prudish Victorians?
6. The US Greeting Card Association estimates approximately 190,000,000 valentines are sent each year in America. That's the same as sending 3 to everyone in France.
7. No surprise … in the 1980's, the diamond industry began to promote Valentine's day as an occasion to give jewellery.
8. An estimated 15 million e-valentines were sent in 2010.
1. The real Saint Valentine didn't have much fun. Nobody is even sure if he was Valentine of Rome, or Valentine of Terni. Neither found love - just a beating and decapitation by the Romans.
2. Can you guess who gets most valentines? It's teachers.
3. In 1797, a British publisher issued The Young Man's Valentine Writer. It was full of suggested sentimental verses for the young lover unable to compose his own.
4. What started the card craze? The fall in postal rates in the 19th century – the Penny Post - got English Victorians sending cards by mail.
5. The post meant you could send anonymously. Is this why there was a sudden appearance of racy verse from the otherwise prudish Victorians?
6. The US Greeting Card Association estimates approximately 190,000,000 valentines are sent each year in America. That's the same as sending 3 to everyone in France.
7. No surprise … in the 1980's, the diamond industry began to promote Valentine's day as an occasion to give jewellery.
8. An estimated 15 million e-valentines were sent in 2010.
