History of the Wedding Ring

The Egyptians are credited with the origin of the wedding ring some 4,800 years. Twisting plant material such as hemp into rings and bracelets, they believed, were linked to an immortal love with no end. These rings were worn on the fourth finger of the left hand based on a belief in vena amoris, or love vein. It was believed that this vein connected directly from that finger to the heart, thereby linking the couple's destiny.

The Romans took a less romantic approach. Their iron wedding bands were not a symbol of love, but signified a binding legal agreement of ownership by their husbands, who regarded rings as tokens of purchase. As with the Egyptians, the Romans believed in vena amoris and wore the bands on the fourth finger of their left hand.

2,000 years ago in Asia, puzzle wedding rings were very popular. This trend followed into the early trade routes to the Middle East, where they were commonly used as wedding bands, especially by sultans and sheiks who required each of their wives to wear one as a pledge of loyalty while he was away. If the wife were to remove her ring, it would fall apart, making it very difficult to put back together without knowing the solution.

Europe-Sterling silver poesy rings became very popular during the Renaissance and continued to be so into the 17th century. Poesy bands were etched with verse and frequently cited in Shakespeare's plays.

United States- The Puritans renounced wedding bands altogether, because they considered all jewelry frivolous. Colonial Americans traded wedding thimbles instead of rings, arguing that thimbles were acceptable because they were practical. After marriage, women often sliced off the bottom of the thimble, thereby creating a wedding band.

Why the fourth finger? There are two speculated reasons:

1. Wedding rings were worn on the thumb in the 17th century, but the 4th finger was used during the ceremony. Some feel that during a Christian wedding, the priest arrives at the 4th finger after touching three fingers on the left hand "In the Name of the Father...Son...and Holy Ghost."
2. The Egyptians and Romans believed that the ring finger follows the "vena amoris" or vein of love which is directly connected to the heart.

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