The history of the ring

Today we are looking at the piece of jewellery that has consistently remained the most beloved one through times; the ring.

Rings have symbolised a range of different things through times, and also carried various meanings ever since the Medieval times, which is when it first became popular.  Back then everyone – from poor to rich – would wear rings, and the material would indicate the wearer’s class (copper, gold, silver…) but it was only in the 14th century that rings were adorned with various jewels – amen to that!

It seems that only three cultures have not been making use of rings: the Assyrians, the Celts of Ireland and the Eskimos.  Now the fact that the Eskimos don’t wear rings makes a lot of sense, as wearing a ring in such a cold climate would impede blood circulation.  However, I am pretty sure Admiral Robert Peary – a famous old explorer – would have liked to have been informed of this tiny little detail, before setting off on one of his arctic trips and bringing along lots of rings to trade with the Eskimos – only to find himself dragging around a pretty useless currency!

So what kind of things have the ring symbolised through times?  Well, the most common would be commitment, in the shape of an engagement and wedding ring.  However, some lovely ladies would also wear rings to show their commitment to God.  Signet rings are sometimes worn by family members (back in the days this was very common amongst noble families) in order to symbolise their heritage and community.  Signet rings are also used to symbolise memberships, which is often the tradition at certain schools – something I only first encountered here in the UK.

I was quite surprised to read the other day that the old Pope’s gold ring was destroyed according to tradition, as I would imagine such a ring to be an important part of history; but even that act has a specific significance.  Since signet rings would be used to seal letters by the Pope to validate their authenticity, by destroying the ring they are preventing any backdating or forging of documents with the ring.  It is tradition for the ring to be destroyed by the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church (basically the admin person working with the Pope) with a papal silver hammer in the presence of the Cardinals.

So there we go, a bit of history of the ring – hopefully it inspires you to wear a ring to work today!  I would love to hear about your favourite ring – where it comes from and what it symbolises, so do feel free to share it with me below in the comments box.  Happy Friday my lovely!