Sunday, January 22, 2012

A Familiar Ring To It...

My favorite part of the day is when a young man enters my jewelry section in search for that one particular piece that will say to his prospective significant other, “yes, I love you enough that I would sacrifice this much money for you.”  My favorite part isn’t the look of joy he experiences when I give him an amazing deal on an amazing piece.  No, my favorite part is explaining to that young man that he is participating in a mating ritual that has existed since time immemorial!

Strange romantic symbolism binds our age to ancient times.  But our ties are lost if we forget why our traditions exist.  I mean, why do we wear rings on our ring fingers?  Why do we give our spouses gold?  Why do we spend so much money on diamonds?  Why do we choose diamonds anyways?  Everyone used to know the reasons why we have these traditions.  Now we simply operate as if these traditions were rules that always existed and never evolved.  But that isn’t true.

Fun Facts:

1.      The tradition of wearing a ring on the left hand wasn’t universally accepted until after WW2.  Almost all modern cultures wear the wedding band on the left hand, except for Korea.  Koreans traditionally wear their wedding band on the right hand.
2.      In ancient medicine, the ring finger was thought to house a nerve that connected it to the heart.  It was known as the Love Nerve.  By giving your spouse a ring that was borne on the ring finger, you were symbolically giving something that would always be next to his or her heart.
3.      The diamond has been perceived to possess extraordinary warding powers since its emergence in popularity millennia ago.  A warrior was thought to be able to inherit the hardness of a diamond if he wore the diamond against his flesh in battle.  Diamonds were also thought to protect against mental maladies, contagious diseases and evil spirits.  However, the powers of a diamond were lost if it was purchased—fortunately, the powers may return if it’s given.
4.      Additionally, while the diamond solitaire is the traditional engagement ring, the symbolism of the ring is what is important and holds significance, so when deciding, make sure you find that perfect ring that makes the right statement. Feel free to stop by and ask any of our associates for ideas or examples of different types of rings.