St Valentine and Cupid

Love is represented in so many ways in literature and throughout history.

Cupid is the Roman God of sexual love, depicted as a winged, naked boy, holding a bow and arrow.

Different words are used to describe the different forms of love – Eros indicates sexual love, Agape is a Christian love.

St. Valentine’s Day is the feast day of two saints named Valentine, both of whom were martyred around 200 -300 AD.

It’s hard to link the custom of sending cards on this day to either one of the saints!

In fact, it’s thought that the celebration actually relates to a Roman festival Lupercalia, held on 15 February.