‘The Victory of Eros’ by Angelica Kauffmann, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Long before Cupid became a Valentine’s Day icon, he was a powerful mythological figure who illustrated how love was understood and imagined.
In Roman lore, Cupid is most commonly described as the son of Venus, the goddess of love, and Mars, the god of war. Known in Latin as “Cupīdō,” meaning desire, he is typically depicted as a winged child with golden curls. Cupid carried a bow and two kinds of arrows: gold-tipped shafts that inspired uncontrollable desire and lead-tipped ones that sparked aversion. Wherever he shot his arrows, love — or its sudden rejection — took hold, binding souls together or driving them apart in ways even the gods could not predict.
Earlier myths tell a similar story. Some historians believe the Greeks came up with Cupid first, portraying him as Eros — originally a primordial force of love and later depicted as the son of Aphrodite, Venus’ Greek equivalent.
Centuries later, the legend of Cupid’s playful arrows became part of the celebrations for the feast of Saint Valentine. To honor love, people embraced symbols that mirrored his gifts. Flowers, with their beauty and fragrance, became tokens of affection. Roses, in particular, symbolized passion through their deep red hue.
Sweet and indulgent, chocolate gradually came to be associated with romance itself — a small pleasure thought to stir emotion and soften even the sternest heart. Its rise as a Valentine’s gift surged in the 19th century, fueled in large part by Cadbury’s introduction of heart-shaped chocolate boxes.
Over time, mythology morphed into tradition. These symbols evolved into modern rituals of romance, especially on Valentine’s Day, which remains the largest occasion for flower-giving worldwide.