Wedding Ring Symbolism – The Meanings and Origins
When you decide to get married there are lots of things to plan, your wedding rings are just one of them. You might decide to buy them from a specialist like Abelini jewellery, have family heirlooms to hand or even have some made to your own specifications. Whatever you decide you probably haven’t given a thought to the meanings or origin of the wedding ring as they are more than just a piece of jewellery.
The Origins of Wedding Rings
The Ancient Egyptians are the first known people to exchange rings. They exchanged rings made from hemp and braided reeds. The rings were placed on the fourth finger of the left hand as they believed that there was a “vein of love” that ran from this finger to the heart. Rings weren’t a sign of commitment or marriage but the Egyptians believed in the power of a neverending circle that represented eternity.
The Romans wore their wedding rings on the same finger as the Egyptians. Similarly, they also believed that this finger had a connection to the heart too. They would give their wives a ring made from iron. Some of their rings even had keys attached to them showing ownership.
In the Middle Ages, rings were exchanged frequently as gifts, signs of faith, or as amulets that would cure illness. It also became popular to wear a stack of rings where people would wear rings from their palm to their fingertip. It was also in this time period that gold bands were exchanged during the marriage ceremonies. These were usually decorated with doves or two linked hands. In the 1300s the Christian Church didn’t like these designs and considered them to be “heathenish” and led to couple exchanging plain and simple gold bands.
In the 1500’s wedding rings were required as part of the wedding ceremony although they were considered superstitious by some.
By the 1800’s wedding rings were becoming more sentimental and symbolic. In 1855 an act was passed so that all wedding rings had to have a hallmark.
These days the material and/or design of a wedding ring isn’t as important as it once was with people choosing rings containing stones or made from materials such as platinum or white gold and some people don’t even opt for exchanging rings at all as in some ceremonies it’s not essential.
The Meaning of Wedding Rings
The day I became a wife was one of the best days of my life. I am not going to lie. We had been together 13 years and after a very eventful year, we decided to stop putting off our big day. We got married in New York with just four other guests (two who got married right after us) and I honestly wouldn’t have changed any of it. To me wearing my ring symbolises my love and commitment to my husband and the same for him too. It’s not a symbol of ownership like it might once have been in the past.
For many couples the exchanging of rings symbolises the start of a new chapter of their lives together, is the last gift they give each before they are announced man and wife and as I’ve already mentioned signifies the love and commitment they share.
As the rings are given vows are usually said by each partner along the lines of “with this ring, I thee wed…”. The circular shape of a wedding ring symbolises eternity and everlasting and love is endless and that it lasts forever. This is from the time when getting married meant being married for life and coincides with your vows – until death do us part.
It can be said that the material a wedding ring is made from is a symbol too, a strong metal such as gold or platinum symbolises strength and are tough to break just like the bond in any marriage. Using gems within the ring can also be a symbol of strength and resilience for this reason diamonds are usually the gemstone of choice.
Are you getting married soon or are you already married? Did you know any of the above – I know I certainly didn’t.
