"The History of the Engagement Ring"
Contrary to modern prevailing theory, the tradition of the diamond engagement rings is not very old, and throughout it's history, engagement rings have not had any stone associated with them, much less a diamond. In fact, it's only been in the last 65 years that the mystique that an engagement must havea diamond in it has prevailed!
The engagement ring has become the ultimate symbole of love, devotion, and commitment. It's a circle with no end. It's the shape of the sun and the full moon, which are ancient symbols of the constanty of life, etc. Like the wedding ring, it symbolizes unity, perfection, andeternity.
The first engagement symbol was not a ring and is completely unromantic! Cavemen originated the engagement symbol by using cord to tie the hands and feet of his mate so she could not escape. Once it seemed she would stay, he loosened her feet and tied only tied her hands. When he was completely certain she was "his", he then tied the cord only around her
finger. There is a theory that during ancient times 2 people were symbolically joined by (consentual) exchanging of plaited rushes, cord, or other materials, but there simply is no evidence to support this theory.
The ancient Greeks began the tradition of the betrothal ring or enagement ring as we know it today. It symbolized the affection felt by a man for a woman and represented a commitment on the part of the woman to the man. Marriage was not always the end object, and this followed through to the rise of the Anglo-Saxon culture ("troweth" translates to"truth").
The emergence of the Roman Republic (449-31 BC) brought about a widespread surge in the wearing of the engagement ring. This ring was viewed as a "slave" ring, denoting that a woman belonged to a man, and many of them featured carved "key" designs, denoting that the woman had both unlocked her husband's heart and his treasury, since a woman in Roman times was entitled to 50% of her husbands assets. These rings were generally made of iron or silver. There were many restrictions on who could and could not wear rings, both engagement and otherwise, and the Emperor Justinian finally lifted thoserestrictions.
By 4 AD, the Romans society had incorporated some of the Egyptian terminology and thoughts about the engagement ring. It was around this time that the Romans originated the practice of wearing the engagement ring on the 3rd finger of the left hand. These rings were called "fede" or "vena amoris" ("vein of love"), and popular thought at that time held that this "vein"ran directly to the heart.
The Middle Ages saw the rise in popularity of the fede or Gimmel (engagement) ring. Lower classes often exchanged the plaited hair, woven into engagement rings and wedding bands, of their loved ones to express their eternal commitment to each other. The landed gentry and royalty also began incorporating the engagement ring and wedding band tradition into the marriage ritual. The rise in popularity of the engagement ring was probably as a result of Pope Innocent III's order in the 12th century that a wedding ring be included in the wedding ceremony and that all weddings must be held in a church proper. Although the first instance of the giving of a diamond engagement ring was first recorded in 1477 (Archdule Maximillian of Hamburg presented Mary of Burgandy with a diamond engagement ring), diamond engagement rings were not considered "traditional" until hundreds of years later, and when this fad became popular, it had very little to do with romance or papal decree.
Prior to 1870, diamonds were indeed scared and a rare commodity, and very few diamond mines operated at that time. However, in 1870, a several huge, seemingly bottomless diamond mines were discovered in South Africa in 1870, and it caused quite a panic among the diamond industry, especially the diamond mine investors. The new discovery caused a flood of the diamond market, and the price was driven down dramatically. Thus was the DeBeers Diamond Mines, Ltd., headed and founded by Mr. Oppenheimer, created solely to pursue regain monopolistic control of the world's diamond supplies, most notably, the new diamond mines in South Africa. Once DeBeers gained control of the diamond supply, they then needed to find a way to manipulate and control the demand fordiamonds. As late as 1919, the diamond market was still reeling from the diamond mine discovery, and diamond prices were down over 50%. Mr. Oppenheimer's son, Harry, met in NY with Gerald Lauck of the N.W. Ayer Co. (a leading NY advertising firm), and thus was born the "tradition" of "only a diamond engagement ring will do",which persists to this day.
DeBeers still controls the entirety of the world's diamond supply, and it is well know in the jewelry and diamond trade that any jeweler or gemstone seller who dares to drop their prices below the DeBeers' set "standard" faces the very real threat of having the local market where said seller sells being simply flooded by DeBeers at prices the seller could never hope to compete with. It is a simple matter for DeBeers to soak up a small loss and write it off at the end of the year, very worth while to the company to keepthe diamond industry "in line".
In actuality, the rarity of the diamond is a complete myth. Diamonds are actually as plentiful as the proverbial Carter's pills! Fortunately, today's consumer is wise enough to understand how to shop the "4 C's" and is not afraid to consider high quality diamond simulants in buying that special engagement ring. Please see our page on Moissanite and Cubic Zirconia (CZ) to learn more about diamond simulants - less expensive, absolutely conflict free, and just as amazingly beautiful as thehighest quality diamond!
