Romantic Collection (#64)

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Victoria (1819-1901) and Albert (1819-1861) riding in Windsor Park when young. Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha married his first cousin, Queen Victoria, in 1840

Scene from Shakespeares Richard III, (1591) c1870. Richard III (King of England 1483-1485), Duke of Gloucester at this time, woos Anne, daughter of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, The Kingmaker

Where Ignorance is Bliss, 1868. Artist: George Du Maurier
Where Ignorance is Bliss, 1868. Invasion of privacy by a seaside camera obscura (left). Theodore thinks he has found a private spot where he can woo Emily

Rink to me only with thine eyes, 1876. Artist: George Du Maurier
Rink to me only with thine eyes, 1876. The increasing popularity of roller-skates perhaps gave romantic young couples a better opportunity to be together without chaperones

British soldier dreaming of his country sweetheart at home, World War I, 1914-1918. Sentimental postcard

The return of the legionnaire, c1900. French postcard

The Solitary Tree, 1823. Artist: Caspar David Friedrich
The Solitary Tree, 1823

Psyche Receiving the First Kiss of Cupid, 1798. Artist: Francois Pascal Simon Gerard
P syche Receiving the First Kiss of Cupid, 1798. Found in the collection of the Louvre, Paris, France

It is the east and Juliet is the sun, 1856-1858. From Act II, Scene 2 of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

The Jewish Bride, (The Loving Couple), 1667. Artist: Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn
The Jewish Bride, (The Loving Couple), 1667. Portrait of two figures from the Old Testament, known as The Jewish Bride. From the collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

A Woman Playing the Theorbo-Lute and a Cavalier, c1658. Artist: Gerard Terborch II
A Woman Playing the Theorbo-Lute and a Cavalier, c1658. From the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Jupiter and Danae, 17th century. Artist: Peter Paul Rubens
Jupiter and Danae, 17th century. From a private collection

Novalis (1772-1801), pen-name of Friedrich von Hardenberg, German Romantic poet and novelist. Died of consumption. Known as the Prophet of Romanticism

Morgan le Fay casts spell on Merlin. Artist: Henry Ryland
Morgan le Fay casts spell on Merlin. Engraving after Henry Ryland (1856-1924), English painter and illustrator

Novalis (Friedrich von Hardenberg), German Romantic poet and novelist, c1800
Novalis (pseudonymn of Friedrich von Hardenberg 1772-1801) German Romantic poet and novelist. Prophet of Romanticism. Engraving

Terracotta statuette of the goddess Lama, Susa, 2nd millenium BC. Now in The Louve

Moritz von Schwind (1804-1871), Austrian painter. Artist: Moritz von Schwind
Moritz von Schwind (1804-1871), Austrian painter. Self-portrait of the romantic painter

True Love, American Valentine card, 1908. Cupid, his bow held aloft, rides a swallow, a bluebird of happiness. In Roman mythology Cupid was the son of Venus

To My Valentine, American Valetine card, 1907. Cupid holds a heart pierced by an arrow. The flowers are forget-me-nots (Myosotis palustris)

To My Valentine, American Valentine card, c1908. Cupid shoots an arrow into a heart held up by a putto. The words are surrounded by garlands of forget-me-nots (Myosotis palustris)

Cupid shooting an arrow carrying a love letter, American Valentine card, 1908. He stands by a red heart inscribed with a message and surrounded by sweet violet (Viola odorata) which

If You d Only Be My Valentine, American Valentine card, 1910. Cupid is gathering a basket of red hearts from a pine tree which, in the language of flowers represents daring

To My True Love, American Valentine card, c1910. Cupid dances on grass with naturalised Snowdrops and is playing a lyre of bluebells

Embossed valentine card, Germany, c1911. This elaborate card was of the type made for the American market, hence the use of English. It was probably an expensive card at the time

The Tee, postcard, c1905

Valentine card with a golfing theme, c1910s-c1920s

Valentine card with golfing theme, American, c1930s

Valentine card with golfing theme, Germany, 1912. Made in Saxony for export to the United States

Valentine cards with a golfing theme, 1911. Both cards were made in Germany and printed in Saxony, but the left card was for the US market, the right card for the British market

The Cosy Corner, novel with golfing theme, c1906-c1909

The Links postcard, 1905

Valentine postcard with a golf theme, 1911. Although issued by Raphael Tuck, a leading British company, the card was printed in Germany

The New Science, 1887. Palm-reading and spiritualism were popular pastimes in the Victorian period. However, the damage that a reading could do to a happy relationship is illustrated in this cartoon

The Old, Old Tune, 1873. Artist: Joseph Swain
The Old, Old Tune, 1873. Prince Alfred serenades his bride to be. Her Russian ancestry is illustrated in the two bears on the crest beneath her windowsill

A (Real) German Defeat, 1870. Artist: Joseph Swain
A (Real) German Defeat, 1870. This cartoon shows the Princess Louise and her betrothed, the Lord of Lorn (John Campbell). For the first time

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