From Cavemen to the 21st Century 

 

43000BC:  The caveman tied cords made of braided grass around his chosen mate’s wrists, ankles, and waist, to bring her spirit under his control.

 

Circa 2800 BC: Egyptians were buried wearing rings made of a single silver or gold wire on the third finger of their left hands, believed to be connected directly to the heart by the vena amoris. Quite possibly the creation of the "ring finger" trend.

 

2nd Century BC: According to Pliny the Elder, the groom firstly gave the bride a gold ring to wear during the ceremony and at special events, then an iron ring to wear at home, signifying her binding legal agreement to his ownership of her.

 

1st Century BC: Puzzle rings first appear in Asia, where sultans and sheiks use them in order to tag each of their wives.

 

1217: The bishop of Salisbury puts an end to the popular practice of seducing girls into mock marriage with rings made of rushes. His solution was clear  Declaring a marriage with a rush-ring as legally binding.

 

1477:The FIRST diamond engagement ring!  Archduke Maximilian of Austria proposes to Mary of Burgundy with a ring that is set with thin, flat pieces of diamonds in the shape of an “M.”

 

1700s: Silver “poesy rings” engraved with flowery sayings were all the rage in Europe for those wealthy enough to afford them. Across the Atlantic Ocean, the Puritans gave their betrotheds useful thimbles instead of rings. Eventually, however, many thimbles get their tops sliced off and are worn as rings anyway.

 

1800s: The highly sentimental Victorians make jewelry from human hair, and use gemstones to spell out names or endearments, such as a D-E-A-R-E-S-T ring set with a sequence of diamond, emerald, amethyst, ruby, emerald, etc.

 

1886: Tiffany & Co. introduces the “Tiffany setting,” a six-prong ring designed to maximize a diamond’s brilliance by raising it up from the band.


Early 1940’s: Engagement rings become the leading line of jewellery in most department stores.


1981: The most iconic engagement ring the stunning 12-Carat Saphire ring originally belonged to the late Princess Diana and now worn by the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton. 


2003: Cost effective retailers, such as WalMart in the USA, bring out their own engagement ring collections, making them available to the mass market. 


2007: The world most expensive engagement ring is a stunning 24-Carat Emerald Cut ring given to Beyonce from Jay Z back in 2007. Originally valued at $2.6 million, the phenominal ring is now estimated to be worth a breath taking $5.6 million. WOW!