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The wedding ring has a long history. Ancient Egyptians fashioned twisted and braided papyrus, rushes and reeds growing along the flood plains of the fertile river Nile into rings for fingers and larger bracelets for wrists.
The ring is a circle - the symbol of eternity for the Egyptians as well as many other ancient cultures. It has no beginning and no end, it returns to itself and the shape was worshipped in the form of the Sun and the Moon. The hole in the center of the ring was important in its own right as the symbol of the gateway leading to the past and the future.
The early rings usually lasted about a year before wear and tear took their toll. Some decided that they wanted a longer lasting material, and opted for leather, bone and ivory to craft their tokens of love. It is easy to see how the gift of a ring became associated with love in hopes to capture the circle of eternity.
The art of metallurgy took over - very gradually. Early metal wedding rings were often uneven and had precious and semi-precious stones set into them. At that time jewelry was more for show and to express wealth.
Before coinage, gold and other metal rings were used for currency. In early Rome, iron was adopted as the metal of choice for wedding rings because it symbolized the strength of love a man felt for his chosen woman and the act of giving the ring was considered legally binding and enforceable.
After coinage, gold was rapidly promoted to first choice.
Gemstones were also a common addition later in medieval Europe.
In renaissance Italy silver made a comeback, and wedding rings were highly ornate and usually inlaid with niello, (a decorative form of enamel). Silver became briefly fashionable in seventeenth century England and France and was widely used for wedding rings. Sentimentally inscribed with poetry either inside or out, they were highly popular.
Gold soon began to take over and would never look back…
These days there are many varieties of wedding rings. Buyers are able to have them just about any way they choose. Though wedding rings come in many ways now, the fundamentals of the band remain the same--a symbol of an everlasting love.
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