The Morning of St Valentine

A young lady seated at a table holds a Valentine letter in her hand. Her head framed by a magnificent cascade of hair is tossed back as she compares her likness in the mirror on the table with the qualities apparently attributed to her by her admirer. Her favourite Pekinese perches on her lap and chews another already discarded Valentine addressed to Celia. In the doorway to the left of the scene a young postboy presents yet further mail for the disdainful beauty. The success of this painting lies in the clarity with which the artist tells the story tinged with a romance that appealed to the sentiment of the Victorian public.