News and Society > Marriage Wedding > Engagements - A Short History
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Article rating : 0.00, 0 votes. Author : Kevin Hart
Have you ever wondered about engagement rings?
In the Anglo-American tradition, an engagement ring is a ring worn by a woman on her left-hand ring finger indicating her engagement to be married. By modern convention, the ring is usually presented as a betrothal gift by a man to his prospective bride while or directly after she accepts his marriage proposal. It represents a formal agreement to chastity and a future marriage.
The tradition of wearing an engagement ring is thought to date bake to Roman times when it was thought that the fourth finger of the left hand was the “vena amoris” (vein of love) leading directly to the heart. Rings of this nature have been found dating back as far as 4 AD.
That said the origin of the engagement ring is still a cause for debate. One trend of thought is that the ring evolved from slave shackles, the ring symbolising the future bondage of husband and wife.
The concept of an “engagement period” can be traced to 1215 when at the Fourth Lateran Council Pope Innocent III declared a longer waiting period between betrothal and marriage.
Engagements rings are worn on the fourth finger of the left hand. This tradition is thought to be from the Romans, who believed this finger to be the "vena amoris" (vein of love), the vein that leads to the heart. Romantic rings found were found in this era (from as far back as 4 AD) which resembled the Claddagh Celtic symbol (two hands holding a loveheart) and so it is thought that this was used as some symbol of love and commitment between a man and a woman.
However there is a lot of speculation about the origins of the engagement ring, see the link below for more information on the history of engagement rings. Some people suggest that the rings could have evolved from slave shackles, and thus symbolise the future bondage of husband and wife.
But our modern day practice of giving an engagement ring can be traced back to 1477 when Maximilian 1, the Holy roman Emperor, gave Mary of Burgundy a diamond ring as an engagement present.
The concept of an engagement period began in 1215 at the Fourth Lateran Council, when Pope Innocent III declared a longer waiting period between betrothal and marriage. The modern Western form of the practice of giving or exchanging engagement rings began in 1477 when Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor gave Mary of Burgundy a diamond ring as an engagement present.
Kevin Hart
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