The Wedding Ring

Rings were used as currency in the Middle East prior to the advent of coinage and were an outward sign of a person’s wealth. In the event of the marriage not turning out okay a woman might have been forced to leave with nothing but the jewelry she wore. This lends a whole new dimension to the saying “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend!” In ancient times the wedding ring was thought to protect the bride from “evil spirits”. Ancient Roman wedding rings were originally made of iron, but later a gold band came to symbolize everlasting love and commitment in marriage. Roman wedding rings were carved with two clasped hands. Very early rings had a carved key through which a woman was thought to be able to open her husband’s heart.

This entry was posted on March 4, 2010 at 16:57 and is filed under Traditions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.

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