engagementring

Engagement Ring

The Significance of a Ring

A circle has no beginning and no end. A knot tied around your finger binds and reminds. And so it is with a ring. It is a symbol of a never-ending, eternal binding commitment to a lover, spouse, friend, church, organization or country.

Rings are worn by religious leaders as a symbol of their commitment to their faith. They were worn as far back as ancient times by Kings and Emperors as a sign of their power, authority, duty, obligation and commitment to their country and its subjects. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt believed that a ring endows the wearer with power, and regarded it as a symbol of eternity.

And of course, the commitment to marry a woman is usually expressed by placing a ring on the fourth finger of her left hand. This custom also originated from the Egyptians. They believed a special vein or nerve ran from that finger to the heart - that the "love pulse" came from the heart and beat through that finger!

The Diamond Ring

Diamonds probably first became popularly added to wedding and engagement rings in the 15th century, by the upper class Europeans of the period. But why diamonds?

The word diamond originates from the Greek word "adamas", meaning to never surrender - a fitting description of the spirit of undying love. The diamond's remarkable hardness made it more resistant to wear than other gems, and which also contributed to its reputation of being almost indestructible and able to last forever, like true love. The Greeks also believed that the brilliance and luster of the diamond is similar to the fire and spark of love. And like a loving relationship, the diamond is also unique, rare and precious. The ancients also believed that the tip of Cupid's arrow is said to be made of diamond, which links together the hearts of two lovers.

This also explains why many couples choose a Hearts and Arrows Diamond, like the Amore™ Eternal Love Diamond, for their engagement ring. With the unique pattern of hearts and Cupid's arrows within the diamond, it is the perfect symbol of their two hearts joined together by the diamond-encrusted tip of Cupid's arrow - a perfect symbol of their love eternaal, strong and true.

The Solitaire Diamond Engagement Ring

Traditionally, the diamond engagement ring was a round brilliant solitaire diamond set in precious metal. A major reason for this was because the brilliant cut round diamond had the best and greatest sparkle, shine, fire and brilliance. It also was the most economical to cut, in terms of wasting as little of the precious diamond rough as possible. However, with time, diamond cutters developed better skills, technologies, methods and styles of cutting diamonds, and were able to produce fancy shape diamonds with fire, sparkle and brilliance that were as equally appealing as those of round brilliant diamonds. As women discovered the beauty and uniqueness of fancy shape diamonds, such as the emerald cut, pear shape or heart shaped diamonds, these started to be used in solitaire diamond engagement rings. Indeed, the fancy shape diamond, known as the princess cut has become a top favorite amongst many brides-to-be.

The diamond engagement ring also evolved to include diamond solitaires set with smaller diamond accents,

such as baguette diamonds or other smaller fancy shape diamonds.

Modern Day Diamond Engagement Rings

Today, diamond engagement rings are far from being confined to solitaire rings. While the classical diamond solitaire ring remains the firm favorite of most young women, the modern, contemporary woman has demanded and received more choices in engagement ring designs and styles.

The options available to the modern-day bride-to-be are almost limitless. And choices have evolved with trends in fashion and lifestyles.

Diamond engagement rings that are growing in popularity include the three stone trilogy diamond ring, the five stone ring, and even cluster rings of a myriad designs. Diamond shapes are also no longer confined to the round brilliant. Solitaire rings, three stone trilogy rings, and even five stone diamond rings are now available with princess cut diamonds, emerald cut diamonds, radiants and other less common diamond cuts and styles like the Asscher cut diamonds.