Love tokens that antiques collectors yearn for
For today's collectors, the tradition has created a wealth of collecting opportunities ranging from precious gold posy rings to glass rolling pins. Even pieces of furniture, such as wedding chests, chairs and dressers are found carved with lovers' initials and often dates of their betrothal or birth of their offspring.
Click here for a Welsh love spoon slideshow
More often than not, it was small domestic objects such as lace bobbins, knitting sheaths and stay busks that were more likely to be adopted as love tokens, while for sailors, Valentines made from shells, or carved whales' teeth made on long, lonely voyages were the gifts of choice.
The best were made personally by the hand of the giver but vast quantities were produced commercially and examples of such things as pottery inscribed with love messages or heart-shaped pincushions with girls' names or messages spelt out either in embroidery or pinheads are still relatively common and readily affordable.
Collectors of naive and primitive works of art are naturally drawn to the rustic love tokens carved in wood throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Collectively, such pieces are
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posted by Christopher Proudlove at
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