A frowning woman wears a yellow gown and holds a small parasol., Text: Full many a fair flower, not half so fair as you, / Has been plucked in early springtime, when fresh with morning's dew, / And you alone, neglected, have been carelessly passed by, / And now, when old and faded, you are left to droop and die., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
A woman sits supporting her chin with her hands. She has bare feet, wrinkles, and is missing teeth. A cat sits in front of her, and a canary is behind him., Text: With a nice new wig and a coat of paint, / You're almost just as good as new; / Folks say you're old, but then you ain't-- / What woman's old at sixty-two?, Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
The maiden aunt has masculine features and wears a bonnet and eyeglasses. A cat sits next to her, and a barrel labeled "vinegar" and a jar labeled "pickles" are nearby., Text: You dear old soul! Every day you grow old, / And your face gives comfort to the vinegar jug; / Your virtues are kept like pickles, I'm told. / Bottled up in a bosm nobody can hug; / If in glory hereafter your face becomes divine, / What a miracle must be wrought, O Valentine., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
The valentine depicts the head of a woman. She wears eyeglasses, a pink cap, and a blue kerchief. The valentine criticizes older women who look for marriage., Text: In stiffly starched kerchief and cap / Just look at our funny old Grandmother, / Who in her old age strives to catch / A husband in hopes he'll take care of her., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
A woman sits with her hands on her lap. She has a carrot in her hair, perhaps suggesting that she's died it red., Text: UGLIEST of the fair creation, / With carrots for fashion on your head; / Face devoid of animation, / Your lips are blue, instead of red. / Dried and wilted are your features, / They're charmless for this heart of mine; / And if I'd wed you I would be sure / To have no rival Valentine., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
The valentine shows a large-chested man walking in a field. He holds a top hat., Text: You conceited old fogie, with face of Brass, / By nature intended for an ass; / But ape the Biped of two-legged kind, / With stomach, all a bag of wind. / Seek for thy wife in Afies clime, / And be her faithful Valentine., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
A large-nosed woman wears a large gown with petal-like furbelows. She holds a nosegay and walks a small dog., Text: The flower of your sex; O! yes indeed! / A flower already gone to seed, / And yet I will be prompt to say, / That you display a real nosegay., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
The valentine depicts a wrinkled woman sitting in front of a mirror. In front of her is a bottled labeled "hair dye." The valentine mocks older single women who dye their hair and portrays them as desperate for matrimony., Text: Now Time has stolen all your charms, / (If any existed not sure am I,) / To win a husband to your arms / Your only resource now to dye., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
The valentine shows a couple kissing. The clock on the wall indicates that it's one o'clock, and a candle burns nearby. His receding hairline and her staid demeanor suggest that they are older than the norm for courtship. Thus, the late courtship is literally late-at-night and possibly an object of ridicule given their ages., Text: As you daintly sip the dews from her lips, / Both time and the hours scorning, / You sit all night in gay delight, / And don't go home 'till morning., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
