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History and lore of the engagement ring
There is little doubt that if you are considering proposing, your intended will accept nothing less than a diamond, but it wasn’t always this way. Diamonds were reserved for the very wealthy or aristocratic only. More often, a ring was given which bore a message inscribed inside. This type of ring was known as a ‘posy’ ring.
Where did the tradition start?
It is purported that the Archduke Maximilian started the trend of giving Mary of Burgundy an engagement ring way back in 1477 and it has stuck. Perhaps he gave her a diamond ring, there is nothing to suggest otherwise.
Three centuries later a heart ring became the engagement ring of choice, most of which boasted a ruby instead of a diamond as it wasn’t until the diamond rush in South Africa in the late 1800’s when diamond mines were discovered and which made diamonds affordable and accessible to a much larger audience that the gift of a diamond engagement ring was born.
The reason we wear an engagement ring on the fourth finger on the left hand is said to have its origins in Ancient Greek who believed that this finger contained a particular vein which lead directly the to heart.
Now, as we sit in the 21st Century we still wear our diamond engagement ring on the fourth hand of the left finger and it is still set in precious metals such as gold or platinum and the demand for them has not waned, in fact almost 80% of all engagement rings sold each year are set with diamonds.
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