Victorian Valentine Greeting Card with Pink Roses & Young Women

The card's message of delicate romantic sentiment is immediately complicated by the visual composition: two women in flowing white dresses lean over a stone balustrade beneath a canopy of pink blossoms, one resting her chin dreamily on her hand while the other plants herself behind her with the proprietary confidence of someone who has absolutely claimed this woman. The gold jewelry — a pendant necklace on one, a bracelet on the other — screams 'we are distinguished ladies with FEELINGS,' and the deep blue night sky behind them gives the whole scene the atmospheric pressure of a Renaissance painting about to make a confession. 'Valentine Greeting' is spelled out in pink script at the bottom, as if the card needed to clarify that yes, this is romantic, no, we will not be elaborating further.