According to records, it was stated that Pope Innocent III was responsible for the creation of two of the most important rings that we are aware of today: the wedding and engagement rings. He asserted that there must be a waiting period between engagement and marriage. Since both of these events were treated as contracts, the rings were symbolically used in order to seal the deal legally. Prior to the 13th century, it was only the engagement ring that was given in Europe, though the history of wedding rings are far older than we are aware of.
Accordingly, about five thousand years ago, the Egyptians already used reed or hemp rings as a sign of eternity since the shape of a circle has no beginning and no end. The stone cut types that we know today such as the princess cut was still not popular during those periods. During the biblical times, great dowry gifts were given in the betrothal of couples. It was therefore assumed that rings, especially those that are considered as precious metals, were substituted for expensive dowries.
During the reign of Romans, rings were utilized as deal attestations and connotation of ownership. High ranking officials wore gold rings, while ordinary citizens wore iron rings as a sign of their position in the community. The rings worn by ordinary citizens at that time were similar to the large rings that held the keys to the household. As such, it has been regarded that if a Roman citizen presented his bride with an iron marriage ring, he was therefore giving her the key to his household as well as all his worldly goods.
It was in 16th century England that the use of wedding ring was officially moved from the right hand to the left hand. It was assumed that such change was done in order to show a women her place in the society, since the right hand was acknowledged as the hand of power. The placement of the wedding ring on the third left hand finger was rooted from the idea that such finger was supposed to be the place where the love vein or vena amoris is situated; therefore, as the ring is symbolic of love, it was officially worn in the third left hand finger as it is directly connected to the heart. Today, wedding and engagement rings are both widely worn on the left hand; however, there are some countries that traditionally wear their engagement rings on the right hand such as Poland and Ukraine.
For Puritans, rings were considered as agnostic, which they believe is inappropriate to use during wedding ceremonies; hence, instead of using rings they used wedding thimbles for their marital vows. The Victorians were the ones who welcomingly embraced the custom of wedding rings and accentuated them with flowers and hearts. On the other end of the spectrum, the Edwardians embellished their rings with leaves and other ornamental arts, which in turn paved way for the rise of art deco rings. From here, the use of gemstones on rings were incorporated and so were the stone cut types such as the princess cut, emerald cut and step cut to name a few.
It was not until World War II that men started to wear wedding and engagement rings. The soldiers going off to war were the first men to wear these rings in order to remember their wives or partners back home. Today, wedding rites are also treated as double ring ceremonies. That is, both the bride and the groom wear wedding rings in order to show their commitment and love for each other, although the use of engagement ring is still reserved for women.
Wedding and engagement rings are both significant jewelries that have a long and fruitful history. Aside from sealing contract deals, these rings were also used as representations of power and position within the society. A marriage ring however, remained as the symbol of commitment between two people. Today, rings used for wedding and engagement comes in various styles and cut just like the popularly known princess cut.
Showing posts with label earrings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label earrings. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Fine Jewelry As Gifts
Fine jewelry refers to items that are commonly used for personal accessories, most common of which includes earrings, bracelets, necklaces and brooches. Jewelry can be made from various materials including precious metals, gemstones and seashells. Since the prehistoric era, jewelry has never ceased to capture the attention of humans, and this continues to date. As a matter of fact, we are very fond of using different jewelry pieces everyday.
Fine jewelry pieces serves the purpose of the perfect gifts for different occasions. This is due to their sensitivity to fashion which simply implies that they are timeless and they have the capability to bridge the gap between differing societal aspects. One good example of which is in the form of engagement and wedding rings, which are common tokens to seal two important life occasions, engagement and wedding. Jewelry pieces are also strong manifestations of group membership and acceptance; worldwide, many organizations utilize rings or pins as symbolic representation of entry and acceptance to the organization, brotherhood or camaraderie.
These days there's a whole range of fine jewelry pieces available for both men and women. For females, popular jewelry choices includes necklaces, earrings, brooches, bracelets and rings. For men, the most common jewelry pieces available are cuff links, tie accessories, watches, customized rings, necklaces and money clips. Over the years, the prices and designs of jewelry pieces have profoundly changed in order to complement different cultural and occasional situations.
If you are searching for the ideal gift items, jewelry pieces with gemstones is a good choice. Loose diamonds remain as the most common adornment use to create jewelry because of their availability, price and their flexibility to complement any design and occasions. If you're thinking of proposing to your loved one the best way to express yourself is to give her a ring set with loose sparklers. This is an excellent way to tell her how much you love her as the ring itself is already representative of your undying and unending love, while the diamonds would represent your indestructible love towards her.
Earrings, bracelets and necklaces that have loose diamonds are also ideal choices as presents as you can never go wrong in terms of design and finish. These jewelry pieces are crafted perfectly for female members of the family such as your sister or mother that could be given to them during their birthdays or during special events in their lives. Aside from the dainty selection available, their use are never limited to certain occasions but can actually be utilized on a daily basis. Loose sparklers could definitely give your jewelry a boost in the aesthetic perspective and make such piece timeless in appeal.
If you are a woman and you already ran out of gift ideas for your father or husband, you may want to look at cuff links. There are no limits as to what you can do when it comes to the motifs or themes of cuff links, as they are truly representative of male character. For instance a simple round cut matt silver cuff link that has loose sparklers in it can symbolize the reticence of a man. Overall, jewelry regardless of size, prize and design is the perfect gift idea because it is fashion forward, timeless, encompass your emotions in small but meaningful package, and more importantly they symbolize the personality of the person who's going to wear it.
Fine jewelry pieces have long been used as tokens due to their timeless appeal and rich symbolic value. In fact they are considered as the perfect gift ideas for all occasions. To further improve the appeal of these items however, gemstones like loose diamonds in differing cut are incorporated. Round cut loose sparklers for instance is widely used are adornments for three stoned engagement or wedding rings.
Fine jewelry pieces serves the purpose of the perfect gifts for different occasions. This is due to their sensitivity to fashion which simply implies that they are timeless and they have the capability to bridge the gap between differing societal aspects. One good example of which is in the form of engagement and wedding rings, which are common tokens to seal two important life occasions, engagement and wedding. Jewelry pieces are also strong manifestations of group membership and acceptance; worldwide, many organizations utilize rings or pins as symbolic representation of entry and acceptance to the organization, brotherhood or camaraderie.
These days there's a whole range of fine jewelry pieces available for both men and women. For females, popular jewelry choices includes necklaces, earrings, brooches, bracelets and rings. For men, the most common jewelry pieces available are cuff links, tie accessories, watches, customized rings, necklaces and money clips. Over the years, the prices and designs of jewelry pieces have profoundly changed in order to complement different cultural and occasional situations.
If you are searching for the ideal gift items, jewelry pieces with gemstones is a good choice. Loose diamonds remain as the most common adornment use to create jewelry because of their availability, price and their flexibility to complement any design and occasions. If you're thinking of proposing to your loved one the best way to express yourself is to give her a ring set with loose sparklers. This is an excellent way to tell her how much you love her as the ring itself is already representative of your undying and unending love, while the diamonds would represent your indestructible love towards her.
Earrings, bracelets and necklaces that have loose diamonds are also ideal choices as presents as you can never go wrong in terms of design and finish. These jewelry pieces are crafted perfectly for female members of the family such as your sister or mother that could be given to them during their birthdays or during special events in their lives. Aside from the dainty selection available, their use are never limited to certain occasions but can actually be utilized on a daily basis. Loose sparklers could definitely give your jewelry a boost in the aesthetic perspective and make such piece timeless in appeal.
If you are a woman and you already ran out of gift ideas for your father or husband, you may want to look at cuff links. There are no limits as to what you can do when it comes to the motifs or themes of cuff links, as they are truly representative of male character. For instance a simple round cut matt silver cuff link that has loose sparklers in it can symbolize the reticence of a man. Overall, jewelry regardless of size, prize and design is the perfect gift idea because it is fashion forward, timeless, encompass your emotions in small but meaningful package, and more importantly they symbolize the personality of the person who's going to wear it.
Fine jewelry pieces have long been used as tokens due to their timeless appeal and rich symbolic value. In fact they are considered as the perfect gift ideas for all occasions. To further improve the appeal of these items however, gemstones like loose diamonds in differing cut are incorporated. Round cut loose sparklers for instance is widely used are adornments for three stoned engagement or wedding rings.
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