History of Engagement Rings
The circle shape of an engagement ring is elemental and has been worn as adornment as far back as history is recorded.
Legend has it that losing an engagement ring predicts the end of the marriage. Find out more interesting facts about the history and myths of engagement rings
June is a very popular month for weddings. Therefore, it would stand to reason that engagement rings are popular December holiday presents. The circle shape is elemental and has been worn as adornment as far back as history is recorded.
Tracing history back to the early Roman Empire finger rings called betrothal rings were given by men to their fiancé to indicate their intention to wed. During this period of history rings of gold were not worn – iron was used to make finger rings. Betrothal rings were not set with gemstones.
Later in history gold was used in the construction of betrothal rings. A commonly used design was that of love knots in gold or silver that quite often could be separated. A part was given to the potential bride and groom at the betrothal ceremony. The two parts of the whole were then reunited on the wedding day.
The practice of engraving the inside of the ring became popular in the 16th century. A poesy (simple sentimental statement such as ‘I love you’) was engraved on the outside and inside of posy rings during that period and the practice migrated into contemporary times with the engraving of initials and the engagement date on the inside of the ring.
Contemporary engagement rings are usually set with diamonds. Besides being extremely valuable, the diamond has favorable properties in myths and legends. For the couple being married the most important is that of the diamond being said to bring loyalty and fidelity.
Also, diamonds are said to be aids to intuition. This led to the myth that as a man places the engagement ring on a woman's finger, the potential bride will instinctively know if this is the man for her.
And finally, when the birthstone of the bride is precious, such as Emerald, Ruby or Sapphire it is considered good luck for the marriage to also set the bride's birthstone on the engagement ring as accent stones to the diamond.
Celebrity Engagement Rings - In recent years more and more couples are doing the reverse of this by using diamonds as accents to the bride's birthstone which is used as the dominate gemstone in the ring. One famous example - the engagement ring of the late Diana, Princess of Wales. This engagement ring consisted of an 18 carat blue sapphire center gemstone surrounded by 14 diamonds.
Ben Affleck gave a very romantic looking 6 carat pink diamond engagement ring to Jennifer Lopez prior to their breakup in 2002. Set with 3 baquette style white diamonds on each side this engagement ring is a very popular replica item.
One final fact about engagement rings – ever see those rings that are composed of 3 separate hoops linked together? Usually the hoops are yellow gold, rose gold and white gold. This is a gimmel ring and while it seems like a contemporaneous trend – this style finger ring dates back to the late 16th century
