Valentines day is February 14th right? Well if you are a native of Wales you may
disagree for Wales has its own Valentines day on January 25th, known as St.Dwynwen's day.
Dwynwen, the patron saint of lovers, was alledgedly a 5th century princess who was one of 24 children fathered by Brychan Brycheiniog of Brechon, who was at that time the king of Wales.
The story goes that Dwynwen escaped to the forest following a rather angry arguement with her lover Maelon Dafodrill and pleaded with God to bestow upon her the capacity to forget him. Whilst sleeping, Dwynwen’s request was answered by an angel who gave her a drinking potion designed to make Dwynwen forget about Maelon. Tragically though Maelon drank the said potion and was turned into ice. Dwynwen at realising this fate, was horrified and prayed to God again, who answered her prayers by granting her three wishes;
The first wish, to have Maelon thawed and restored to life; secondly, to have God look graciously on the aspirations and dreams of all true lovers whilst fixing the broken hearts of the spurned; the final wish was that she would never marry again and spend the rest of her life in service to God.
The traditional way to celebrate St. Dwynwen’s Day
Traditionally, St. Dwynwen’s Day is celebrated by the giving and the receiving lovespoons. The Welsh lovespoon itself dates back the 17th century when young males would carve them from a single piece of wood, decorate the handle with romantic and loving symbols and then give them to a lady who had caught their interest. The earliest surviving spoon of this ilk, dates from around 1667, and is on display at the Welsh Folk Museum in St. Fagans, Cardiff.
Today you can continue this Welsh tradition by offering your loved one a handcrafted Clogau Gold lovespoon containing a touch of rare Welsh gold mined from the Snowdonia mountains. Based on authentic carvings and old symbolic meanings, each lovespoon item carries the unique Clogau and Welsh Dragon marks and is delivered in a luxurious presentation box with a Certificate of Authenticity.
‘This content was provided by Clogau Gold Welsh Jewellery Company’
