Engagement Rings and Gifts

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Engagement Rings

Have you found your special someone? Engagement rings first started as a reminder of the commitment of wedlock: to bless and keep each other in sickness and in health, always and forever. Today, an engagement ring symbolizes the promise of marriage, which is to be united together before friends and family forever more. Traditionally, the woman's ring is offered as a gift to her when the man proposes marriage.

Engagement rings come in all shapes and sizes. White gold and platinum engagement rings are somewhat popular, but the most traditional versions are simple gold bands with set gemstones. Emeralds, rubies, and coloured diamonds have all been used, but a white or clear diamond is the most common. The diamond symbolizes eternity or longevity because a diamond is the hardest known substance; it lasts forever and nothing can break it. Diamonds are formed over millions of years, galvanized under intense heat and pressure in the Earth's crust until something beautiful is created. The diamond symbolizes the intent of marriage, which is to form a bond so tough and lasting that it can never be broken.

The engagement ring is an important cultural symbol, playing a prominent part in the biggest promise you'll ever make. Rings have been used to symbolize marriage and commitment since Archduke Maximilian of Austria gifted a golden ring with diamonds set to form a letter "M" to his bride-to-be, Mary of Burgundy, in 1477. The original engagement ring inspired other upper class figures to betroth diamonds to their loved ones as gifts, a tradition that has lasted for centuries. Over 80% of engagement rings purchased today contain one or more diamonds.

By the 1940s, engagement rings had become the best selling line of jewellery in every jewellery store, and more than a third of people buying engagement rings spend two months' salary or more on what will be the most special gift they ever buy. Following significant media coverage and discussion of blood diamonds coming from Africa, the Kimberley Protocol was created and implemented in the year 2002 to ensure that only responsibly mined diamonds ever arrive at market.