Introduction to Floriography - The Not-So-Humble Rose

I hope you all loved the first in this series talking about the language of flowers - if you haven’t read it yet, it gives a good over view of the beginnings of Floriography and where it came from, you might want to revisit it before you read today’s blog (it’ a long one, so grab some coffee)!

The Artistic Language of Flowers, 1888

Ah, the Rose.
The traditional symbol of love, Valentine’s day, the fail-safe gift for someone you love and admire. But how did it become the poster child of devotion? And do they all have happy connotations or is there more to this flower than meets the eye (or petal)?
There are over 300 species and thousands of cultivators, and there are many different uses for them, from cut flowers you give your lover, to medicine and perfume. As you can imagine, I won’t get even close to discussing all the various types and colours - there aren’t even meanings for them all - but an introduction I hope will suffice. If you’re thinking of including roses in your wedding, this might come in handy in giving even deeper meaning to your day.

The National Flower of England, from the ‘Wars of the Roses’, the Tudor Rose, right up to it being the England Rugby squad symbol, the Rose has never gone out of style here. However, it has a lots of significance around the world. It’s the state flower of 5 U.S, states, it’s exchanged between lovers on St George’s Day in the Catalans, Spain, and surprisingly, most Rose species are native to Asia. In Ancient Greece, the rose was closely associated with the Goddess Aphrodite, and in Christianity, the Rose is used in many texts, songs and art as an image of the Virgin Mary.
In terms of Floriography, each colour holds a different meaning, and when paired with certain colours, a different message. Even how mature the bloom is when received means a completely alternative explanation. Let’s start with something easy…

RED ROSE

Simply explained, Red Rose’s symbolise Love, Enduring Passion, ‘I love you’ and Desire. This is one of the few flower meanings that hasn’t morphed over the years and has probably been rooted in it’s links in religion and Ancient Greek. In Ancient Greece, the rose was closely associated with the Goddess Aphrodite, especially red roses - red because Aphrodite wounded herself on one of its thorns and stained the flower red with her blood. However, slight shade changes can impact meaning - burgundy roses mean unconscious beauty, and deep red has been associated with bashful shame and mourning - how you tell between all these shades, I don’t know. Maybe just stick to ‘red’ to be safe! If you dare give a withered red rose, be prepared for an unhappy recipient, as that symbolises ‘our love is over’ and (hilariously) ‘I would rather die’ - savage!

WHITE ROSE

A long standing symbol of innocence and purity, you might give a friend a white rose to say you think they are ‘heavenly’, or ‘I am worthy of you’ (humble brag much). Ivory roses, on the other hand, are said to represent thoughtfulness, charm and care, so maybe a more modest gift to give a potential love interest to show you’re keen. But beware! Dried white roses are said to mean ‘death is preferable to loss of virtue’ and withered says ‘You made no impression on me’ and ‘fleeting beauty’ - ouch.

PINK ROSE

‘Perfect happiness’ is the main meaning of a pink rose, but if you find and gift a Maiden Blush Rose, this means ‘If you love me, you will find out.’ - cryptic. The lighter the shade of your rose, the more gentle and graceful, the deeper the shade, the more thankful. A great one to give to friends safely as there are no known alternative meanings if withered or dried - PHEW!

YELLOW ROSE

NOW. Yellow roses are fun. Nowadays, a lot of people associate them with friendship, freedom and joy. The perfect pick-me-up for a Nan or to brighten up your home. Lovely stuff. HOWEVER. If you received these in a bouquet from your lover during Victorian times, it was to let you know that your partner had been a very naughty boy. Yellow roses stood for infidelity and a ‘decrease in love’, as well as jealousy! Blimey. Moving swiiiiiftly on….

PURPLE ROSE

At the other end of the scale, a lavender, mauve and purple rose was the perfect initial gift to give someone you were interested in as it stands for ‘Love at first sight’ and ‘enchantment’. An answer to Valentine’s Day when you haven’t plucked up the courage to tell that special someone how you truly feel (plus it adds a bit of mystery to the whole affair, which I personally find veeeeery romantic - you can thank me later).

PEACH, CORAL AND ORANGE ROSES

I’ll skim over these types a bit more briefly, but they are just as splendid! Whereas a peach rose means modesty, appreciation, admiration (or, on the other hand, sympathy), coral roses pack a punch and symbolise desire (oo la la), and orange roses represent fascination - maybe because it’s a more unusual rose to find!
A mix of these 3 could make quite the impact, in both colour and meaning!

NOT-SO-COMPLEX-COMBOS

And finally - I promise! - here are some combinations that might save your recipient some decoding time. These are all combinations of roses with other roses luckily, so I will just reference colours. Can you imagine how long the Victorians must have spent pouring over a mixed bouquet and their flower dictionaries - would the flowers have wilted and so they had to start again? Dread to think.
A single rose stands for simplicity (funnily enough), but if the flower is in full bloom it means ‘I still love you’. If a lover presents 2 roses wired or taped together - CONGRATS - it symbolises an upcoming engagement or wedding! However, if it’s a full bloom flower combined with buds, it means there is a secret hiding (fingers crossed it’s the ring he’s got hiding in his pocket). If you’re going all out with a rose bouquet, mixing red and yellow represents happiness, and all paler colours shows sociability and friendship. And if you really want to show her you’re still as obsessed as ever, roses sent every month mean ‘Beauty ever new’.

What a lovely note to end on. I hope this has given you a great insight into how Floriography, with all its twists and turns, can be so interesting as well as amusing. What flowers should I cover next?

Tim Easton Photography