The History Behind The Love Lock

Historically, the practice seems to come from an ancient Chinese tradition, though there is a story of a doomed love affair in Serbia between a teacher and army officer, who used to meet at a bridge.

The army officer was sent away to Greece and fell in love with someone else, breaking the heart of the school teacher.

We tend to give physical shapes to fragile emotions, as if to elongate their effect. Love is vulnerable and couples may feel a natural urge to solidify it, just like the age-old lover activity of carving one’s initials on a tree.

Locking the padlock and throwing aw...