Valentines Day may have originated as a Pagan celebration of love around the 5 th century, but for all of us romantics who are looking to share the love in the current millennia, February 14th represents a golden opportunity to celebrate your special someone. And what could be sweeter than offering your betrothed something that straddles centuries of tradition and ritual with a thoroughly modern touch, like a beautiful gold ring?
The custom of wearing rings dates back thousands of years to ancient civilizations who were enamored with jewelry and embellishment. The earliest rings discovered in Egyptian tombs featured everything from simple bands of gold to the rings decorated with scarabs, stamped with signets, and symbols of good luck and fortune. Throughout the centuries rings remained an important icon of fashion, wealth, and status.
Early Egyptians exchanged bands during wedding ceremonies made of braided reeds and other inexpensive materials. They believed that the wedding ring should be worn on the fourth finger of the left hand directly over the vena amoris, or love vein, that runs straight from the finger to the heart. It’s quite remarkable that this ancient ritual is still common practice.
While the Egyptians were undoubtedly at the forefront of the wedding ring tradition, it was the Greek Orthodox Church that married the gesture of exchanging wedding bands with an official religious ceremony in the 14th century. Symbolizing eternity, an unbroken circle around the ring finger came into contemporary popularity centuries later during World War II as a memento for couples separated by war, a singular gold band worn as a reminder of an absent husband or wife.
While the Egyptians were undoubtedly at the forefront of the wedding ring tradition, it was the Greek Orthodox Church that married the gesture of exchanging wedding bands with an official religious ceremony in the 14th century. Symbolizing eternity, an unbroken circle around the ring finger came into contemporary popularity centuries later during World War II as a memento for couples separated by war, a singular gold band worn as a reminder of an absent husband or wife.
Happy Valentines Day!