An aged marriage proposal card. It has been around for some years, and the birth dates and names are no longer…
An aged marriage proposal card. It has been around for some years, and the birth dates and names are no longer legible.
According to marital customs, this should have been written and delivered by a matchmaker to perform the "Inquiring the Name" step of the Six Traditional Rites.
Following this tradition is partly about etiquette, but also serves to save face: if the other party has a change of heart, the matchmaker can mediate the rejection gracefully.
However, the gentleman who wrote this card was far too eager and penned it himself, only to be caught in the act by his beloved.
Thus, he was rejected. Alas! Those who know the tale can only pity him.