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Lützen ; and thus paid, in the name of the Swedish hero, a delicate
compliment to the bride, who was a professed admirer of his
character. According to a statement published some years since,
this magnificent volume, which was called, after the name of the
lady, the Garland of Julia, was disposed of, in 1784, at the sale of
the Duke de la Vallière’s effects, for fifteen thousand five hundred
and ten livres (about 650), and was brought to England.
The floral emblems of Shakspeare are evidence of the great
poet’s fondness for flowers and his delicate appreciation of their
uses and similitudes. In ‘ A Winter’s Tale,’ Perdita is made to
present appropriate flowers to her visitors, symbolical of their
various ages ; but the most remarkable of Shakspeare’s floral
symbols occur where poor Ophelia is wearing, in her madness,
“ fantastic garlands of wild flowers ”—denoting the bewildered
state of her faculties.
The order of these flowers runs thus, with the meaning of each
term beneath :—
C r o w F l o w e r s .
Fayre Mayde.
N e t t l e s . D a i s i e s . L on g P u r p l e s .
Under the cold
hand of Death.
Stung to the Her Virgin
Quick. Bloom.
“ A fair maid, stung to the quick ; her virgin bloom under the cold hand of
death.”
Probably no wreath could have been selected more truly
typifying the sorrows of this beautiful victim of disappointed love
and filial sorrow.
The most noted code of floral signs, used as a language by the
Turkish and Greek women in the Levant, and by the African
females on the coast of Barbary, was introduced into Western
Europe by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu and L a Mortraie, the
companion in exile of Charles X I I . , and obtained in France and
England much popularity as the “ Turkish Language of Flowers.”
This language is said to be much employed in the Turkish harems,
where the women praiilise it, either for the sake of mere diversion
in their seclusion, or for carrying on secret communication.
In France and Germany, the language of flowers has taken deep
root, and in our own country the poetic symbolisms of Shakspeare,
Chaucer, Hei'rick, Drayton, and others of the earlier bards, laid the
groundwork for the very complete system of floral emblemism, or language
of flowers, which we now possess. A great many works have
been published, containing floral codes, or diiTtionaries : most of
these, however, possess but little merit as expositions of old
symbols or traditions, and have been compiled principally from
modern sources. '
An ancient floral vocabulary, taken from Dierbach’s Flora
Mythologica der Griechen und Römer, and an approved modern
English ‘ Didtionary of Flowers,’ are appended, in order to make
this portion of our subjeifi complete.
I
Absinth ... The Bitterness and TorHoneysuckle
... Bond of Affection.
ments of Love. Flyacinth ... Amenity,
Acacia ... Love, pure and platonic. Hydrangea ... Coldness.
Acanthus ... Love of Fine Arts. Iris ... Indifference.
Althea ... ... Exquisite Sweetness. Ivy . . . Attachment.
Amaranth ... Fidelity and Constancy. Jasmine • • • Amiability.
Anemone •. • Abandonment. Jonquil... ... Amorous Languor.
Angelica ... Gentle Melancholy. Jujube-tree • *. Relief.
Argentine ... Ingenuity. Larkspur ... Open Heart,
Aster ... • •. Elegance. Laurel • *. Victory and Glory.
Balsam... • •. Impatience. Lavender ... Silence.
Basil ... ... Poverty. Lilac ... ... First Troubles of Love.
Betony ... ... Emotion and Surprise. Lily ... Purity and Majesty.
Bindweed ... Coquetry. Maidenhair ... Bond of Love.
Bluet ... ... Clearness and Light. Marjoram ... Consolation,
Box ... Firmness and Stoicism. Marvel of Peru... Flame of Love.
Bramble ... Injustice and Envy. Mallow... . ... Maternal Tenderness
Burdock ... Importunity. Mint ... ... Wisdom and Virtue.
Buttercup ... Sarcasm. Milfoil... ... Cure and Recovery.
Calendula ... Anxiety. Moonwort ... Rad Payment.
Camellia ... Constancy and SteadMyrtle
... ... Love.
fastness. Narcissus ... Self-esteem and Fatuity
Carrot ... ... Good Character. Nettle ... ... Cruelty.
Cinquefoil ... Maternal Love. Olive ... ... Peace.
Colchicum ... Bad Character. Orange-tree ... Virginity, Generosity,
Cypress ... Mourning and Grief. Peony ... • •. Shame.
Dahlia ... ... Sterile Abundance. Periwinkle ... Unalterable Friendship.
Daisy (Easter] Candour and Innocence Pineapple ... Perfection,
Dandelion . • • Oracle. Pink ... Pure and Ardent Love.
Darnel... ... Vice. Poppy ... ... Sleep.
Digitalis ... Work. Privet 0 ... . * * * Youth.
Dittany ... Discretion. Rose ... • • • Beauty and Love,
Elder ... ... Humility. Rosemary •.. Power of Re-kindling
Ephemeris •. • Transient Happiness. extinct Energy,
Everlasting FIwr. Constancy. Rue • • • Fecundity of Fields.
Fennel... ... Merit. Sage ... . •. Esteem.
Fern •.. Confidence. Sensitive-plant... Modesty.
Forget-me-not, • • • Faithful Remembrance. Solanum ... Prodigality.
Foxglove ... Adulation. Spindle-tree ... Ineffaceable Memory.
Fuchsia • • » Amiability. Strawberry • •. Intoxication, Delight.
Fumitory • • • Hatred, Thyme... ... Spontaneous Emotion..
Geranium ... Folly. Trefoil... ... Uncertainty.
Hawthorn ... Sweet Hope. Tulip ... ... Grandeur.
Heliotrope • •• Eternal Love. Valerian • •• Readiness.
Hellebore ••• Wit. Vervain ... Pure Affection.
Hemlock Perfidy. Viburnum . •. Coolness.
Holly ... ... Defence. Violet ... ... Modesty.
oJ\ © i c i i o n a i * ^ 0 ^ i J fo c o c i * / ,
Acacia ... ... Friendship. Almond-tree ... Indiscretion,
-------Rose • « • Elegance. Aloe ■ • • • Grief.
Acanthus . • • The Arts. Amaranth ... Immortality.
Achillea millefolia W ar. Amaryllis • •. Pride.
Adonis, Flos ... Painful Recollections. Anemone ... Forsaken.
Agrimony ... Thankfulness. ------ Field, • •. Sickness.