Language of Communication

A FAN was a very important attribute to the ball costume that served not only to make fresh air in the hot atmosphere but as a communication language now fully lost. A noblemen ball was a school communicative skills.People fell in love there, chose a bride or a bridegroom, solved financial problems, played cards and gossiped. 

A FAN LANGUAGE was a symbol of a smart ball. It was a secret code in the communication of a cavalier and a lady. Sometimes their fate dfepended on a fan position. A fan was a an attribute of lady's coquetry and flirtation. The word ' обмахиваться ' had a translation of " кокетничать ". If a ldy put a fan from one hand into another, it meant either you are allowed to accompany her home or you have an appointment with her at a definite place and time.

There were some emotional signs connected with a fan: 

hatred - if you give it to a partner with the handle forward

love , sympathy - if you give it with the upper part forward

doubt - if you close the fan partly

refusal - if you close ot fully

innocence, modesty - if it is open less than 1/4

anxiety - quick sharp nervous movements

expectation - patting with a fan on the palm

hesitation - closing the face and partly eyes

coquetry - closing part of the face with a smile

gratitude - opening the fan with head nodding

FAN COLOURS

white - innocence          green - hope                   blue - stability

black and white - broken peace                silver - modesty

rosy and blue - love and loyalty                brown - short happiness

red - happiness              yellow - refusal          gold - richness