The valentines day rose has been associated with love for quite a long time as these were the favorite flower of Venus, the love goddess. And Valentine’s Day being the day to celebrate love, roses unanimously top the charts on Valentine's Day. Add up some spice with rose trivias on happy valentines day. Let your loved ones know how much you care and what does a simple red rose mean to you!

• Legend has it that during the Roman Empire there was an incredibly beautiful maiden named Rhodanthe. Her beauty drew many suitors who pursued her relentlessly. Exhausted by their pursuit, Rhodanthe was forced to take refuge in the temple of her friend Diana. Unfortunately, Diana was of a jealous nature and when the suitors broke down her temple gates to get near the beloved Rhodanthe, she became furious. Enraged, Diana turned Rhodanthe into a rose and her suitors into thorns.

• In an Arabic legend, all roses were originally white until one night when the nightingale met a beautiful white rose and fell in love. At this stage nightingales were not known for their melodious song — they merely croaked and chirped like any other bird. But now the nightingale's love was so intense that he was inspired to sing for the first time. Eventually his love was such that he pressed himself to the flower and the thorns pierced his heart, coloring the rose red forever.

• It is said that Cleopatra knew full well the seductive power of roses. When she entertained Mark Antony on her barge, Cleopatra made sure he was surrounded by the fragrance and extravagance of the flower. Cleopatra had the banquet tables scattered with roses, the floors covered 18 inches deep in petals, the couches lined with rose-filled mattresses, and rose-filled net bags were used as cushions for the two lovers.

• In Christianity, the red rose is symbolic of the blood of Christ and a symbol of martyrdom, charity, the passion and resurrection. The white rose is linked to the Virgin Mary — the rose without thorns.

• Shakespeare refers to roses more than 50 times throughout his writings.

• It fits that the French were the first people to first deliver roses. It was also the French explorer Samuel de Champlain brought the first cultivated roses to North America in the seventeenth century.

Check out how much you know about roses. Test your knowledge here and surprise your valentine with it.

Labels: Valentinesday Rose Trivias