They are more than just glossy and decorative pieces of paper -- they are a window to the very soul of those that have been bruised by playful Cupid's arrows! Within their depths lie a myriad quivering emotions and trembling hopes. Yes, we are talking about the quintessential Valentine's Day card without which this celebration of love and romance just is not complete.

Next to Christmas, Valentine's Day is the biggest revenue grosser for manufacturers when it comes to cards. Take a hold of this. Each year, love-struck Britons spend around 503m UK pounds (835m US dollars) on cards, flowers, chocolates and other gifts for Valentine's Day. World statistics reveal that no less than a billion cards are sent every year on Valentine's Day, placing it just behind Christmas as the second most significant card-giving occasion. That's a lot of love in the air!

But, do you know just how the custom of giving Valentine's cards came into being?

As with the festival itself, even this tradition is shrouded in mystique. According to one belief, the tradition began with Saint Valentine, the patron saint himself, when he was imprisoned by the Roman Emperor Claudius in the 3rd century A.D. Saint Valentine used to pass notes to the jailor's daughter and one of them was signed as 'Your Valentine'. Yet another story suggests that children used to pass notes to Saint Valentine when he was imprisoned and continued to do so even after his execution.

In the 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer introduced the notion of love and romance in what had been till then a rather sombre Christian feast day. Once the floodgates had been opened, there was no stopping! By the 18th century, exchanging gifts and hand-made romantic cards to mark Valentine's Day had become very popular in England. Traditional symbols of lace, hearts, doves, red roses and Cupids started appearing on the cards being exchanged between young lovers.

In 1797, a British publisher came out with a journal titled, "The Young Man's Valentine Writer", filled with hundreds of ready-made sentimental verses for all those who wanted that 'perfect' verse to capture the heart and attention of their beloved!

Till, the late 19th century, cards were being made mostly in England.

The first American Valentine's Day Cards

Love is infectious! The custom of giving cards on Valentine's Day soon spread to America as well. In the 1850s, young Esther A. Howland, an American lady of Worcester, Massachusetts, hit upon the idea of mass-producing traditional Valentine's Day cards. Along with her brother and three friends, she started shipping beautiful hand-made Valentine's Day cards all across the country.

These readymade satin or lace-embellished cards, with romantic messages printed on them, were a huge and instant success. People flocked to buy them -- they were creative and attractively designed, and did a better job than they ever could! Buying a card for the one you loved was now the most natural (and mandatory) thing to do on Valentine's Day.

Earliest Valentine's Day Card

Probably because Saint Valentine himself had signed his note to the jailor's daughter as 'Your valentine', the love tokens being exchanged by people also came to be simply known as 'valentines'.

The earliest Valentine's Day card was sent by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1415 A.D. after the Battle of Agincourt. Obviously missing her dreadfully, he penned several poems, rhymed love letters or 'valentines' to his wife in France. One of these was sent on 14th February.

This card is preserved in the British Museum, and stands a silent testimony to just how deep and strong the roots this tradition had taken. Even aristocracy could not escape its charms!

Today, it is hard to imagine a Valentine's Day celebration without the mandatory card. Even if one is cash-strapped for a gift, one always somehow manages a card to convey the right sentiments!