You and the love of your life are engaged! Congratulations are in order! And everyone wants to see your engagement ring.
But becoming engaged has changed a great deal through the centuries.
There was a time when the engagement itself was considered as important as the ceremony. Marriages were arranged for political or financial reasons and not for the more modern notion of romantic love. Peace could be realized by a convenient wedding, and the merging of powerful families through arranged marriages could change a country’s destiny.
Long ago there was a time when brides were literally stolen from their family. The bride’s father would insist on being reimbursed for the loss of a working member of that family. The “engagement” period signified the intended transfer of ownership of the bride from her father to her husband and covered the time period during which the families would negotiate and agree on the “price” of the bride.
Wedding rings have been worn since ancient Egyptian times, and were often woven and braided from papyrus and reeds. The wedding band symbolizes “eternal” love because it is a circle and has neither a beginning nor an end.
Ancient romans were the ones to wear their wedding rings on the third finger of the left hand because supposedly it has a vein that runs directly to the heart, known as the Vena Amoris (the “vein of love”). Although scientists have since proved that this belief is false, the tradition of wearing the wedding ring on the left hand “ring finger” is still a common practice in many cultures.
In time, the materials used to make these rings became more durable such as leather, bone or ivory.
Ok, wedding rings have been around since the ancient Egyptians. But what about the engagement ring?
The first documented use of a diamond engagement ring was in 1477, when the Archduke Maximilian of Austria in imperial court of Vienna, became engaged to Mary of Burgundy. He commissioned a ring with thin, flat pieces of diamonds placed in the shape of an “M.”
Because the exchange or rings is so common in weddings, civil and religious, it may surprise you to know that rings are not required to make a wedding valid and legal. And even though “diamonds are a girl’s best friend,” the gemstone in an engagement ring does not have to be a diamond.
Tell us about your engagement ring. Is it a diamond, or a different gemstone? Maybe you did something completely different. Let me know in the comments below.
Hearts, Joy, Love!
Jean
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Weddings From The Heart can help. Contact me today at [email protected] or by phone or text at 937-581-3647!
