Historical Wedding Traditions

The antique wedding band has a long tradition dating as far as 860 A. D. Wedding traditions varied greatly between “cultures, ethnic groups, religions and countries”, according to Wikipedia – Wedding.

Roman wedding customs gave way to the engagement ring as a gift. Today, an antique engagement ring would be looked at in the same way. It was worn on the third finger of the left hand, as it is today. It was believed that a nerve ran from the finger directly to the heart.

In Scottish weddings, the custom was to marry just outside the church with a ceremony in the Scottish language. The wedding party and guest then went inside the church for a ceremony in Latin where wedding bands were exchanged believing that the rings symbolically had no beginning or end. Of course, the event was followed by a marriage kiss.

In Hawaii, very little is known about the old marriage tradition as there is no language of old Hawaii. However, we do know that they exchanged wedding bands symbolizing the sun, the earth, and the heavens.

Pope Nicholas, in 860 A. D, told all that the engagement ring was required to seal the marriage. The ring was considered a ring of gold. It wasn’t until 617 years later that adding a diamond to the ring of gold as an engagement ring became popular.

In old England, the tradition of something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, started. Although these customs are used today, few know anything of their relevance.

Something old is symbolic of continuity, usually a piece of lace or an old piece of jewelry. Today, an antique wedding band or vintage wedding band could be used for something old. Something new could even be an antique wedding band and would be considered that something new. It is a new gift to the bride-to-be. Something borrowed would be symbolic of future happiness and that was given to the bride by a friend. Something blue meant purity and a band of blue cloth was worn on the bottom of the bride and groom’s wedding attire.

During the time of the knights, the knight would go into a tournament wearing a single flower or a handkerchief from the bride. That has turned into the custom of the groom wearing a flower from the bride’s bouquet.

The white gown was not a symbol of purity but rather, of joy. In 1499, Ann of Brittany started the tradition of the white gown being fashionable wedding attire.

Today, some traditions have changed but many are the same. The diamond engagement ring, the wedding band symbolizing the never-ending love between the husband and wife, the white wedding dress, the something blue, and the single flower are still popular traditions today.

This Article is originally posted here: https://www.gesner.com/blog/historical-wedding-traditions/

Antique Wedding Bands: https://gesner.com/antique-vintage-jewelry/wedding-bands

Antique Engagement Rings: https://gesner.com/antique-vintage-jewelry/engagement-rings

Gesner Estate Jewelry: https://gesner.com/

Types of Antique Engagement Rings

There are various styles of Antique Engagement Rings that people can choose from.  Making the proper selection will depend on the particular look  that one is attracted to and, of course, establishing budget parameters.  Here are some examples of great styles of engagements rings that Gesner Estate Jewelry can offer.

Edwardian Engagement Rings

Edwardian Engagement Rings

Edwardian Engagement Rings were some of the most popular rings of the early 1900’s.  These rings offer a lace-like detail filigree that was cherished by ladies of the Edwardian era.  These classical rings offer a sense of diversity and special appeal that is unique to the era.  The Edwardian rings were usually delicate and very feminine.

Art Deco Engagement Rings

Art Deco Engagement Rings

Art Deco Engagement Rings cover the time period between the 1920’s and 1930’s.  Emeralds, Sapphires and Rubies became very popular and were often used with diamonds to create the “look” of the Art Deco era.  The Art Deco “look” often combines influences of cubism, geometric and angular design.  They are equally popular with the Edwardian look and certain to be cherished for years to come.   These rings are very hard to find and are still very much in high demand.

Platinum Engagement Rings

Antique Platinum Engagement Rings

Antique Platinum Engagement Rings are what we specialize in and our collection features a very large inventory of breathtaking craftsmanship, style and design. 

Gesner Estate Jewelry offers the finest selection of quality antique engagement rings at great prices.  Take the time to view all the options that we offer on our site and please contact us if you have any questions.  Visit us at https://gesner.com/ for a true visual experience!  We look forward to hearing from you and helping you with your needs. (813)282-1008 or (727)586-6000

Historical Wedding Traditions

The antique wedding band has a long tradition dating as far as 860 A. D. Wedding traditions varied greatly between “cultures, ethnic groups, religions and countries”, according to Wikipedia – Wedding.

Roman wedding customs gave way to the engagement ring as a gift. Today, an antique engagement ring would be looked at in the same way. It was worn on the third finger of the left hand, as it is today. It was believed that a nerve ran from the finger directly to the heart.

In Scottish weddings, the custom was to marry just outside the church with a ceremony in the Scottish language. The wedding party and guest then went inside the church for a ceremony in Latin where wedding bands were exchanged believing that the rings symbolically had no beginning or ending. Of course, the event was followed with a marriage kiss.

In Hawaii, very little is known about the old marriage tradition as there is no language of old Hawaii. However, we do know that they exchanged wedding bands symbolizing the sun, the earth and the heavens.

Pope Nicholas, in 860 A. D, told all that the engagement ring was required to seal the marriage. The ring was considered a ring of gold. It wasn’t until 617 years later that adding a diamond to the ring of gold as an engagement ring became popular.

In old England, the tradition of something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, started. Although these customs are used today, few know anything of its relevance.

Something old is symbolic of continuity, usually a piece of lace or an old piece of jewelry. Today, an antique wedding band or vintage wedding band could be used for something old. Something new could even be an antique wedding band and would be considered that something new. It is a new gift to the bride to be. Something borrowed would be symbolic of the future happiness and that was given to the bride by a friend. Something blue meant purity and a band of blue cloth was worn on the bottom of the bride and groom’s wedding attire.

During the time of the knights, the knight would go into a tournament wearing a single flower or a handkerchief from the bride. That has turned into the custom of the groom wearing a flower from the bride’s bouquet.

The white gown was not a symbol of purity but rather, of joy. In 1499, Ann of Brittany started the tradition of the white gown being fashionable wedding attire.

Today, some traditions have changed but many are the same. The diamond engagement ring, the wedding band symbolizing the never ending love between the husband and wife, the white wedding dress, the something blue and the single flower are still a popular tradition today.

The 4 C’s – Carat Weight, Color, Clarity and Cut

 When considering your purchase of an antique engagement ring or vintage style engagement rings, there are four things to take into consideration-carat weight, color, clarity and cut.

Carat is a measure of weight for a diamond. The European Cut diamond as compared to a Round Brilliant of the same millimetre size can weigh as much as 10-15% more because of cut.  Most diamonds are under one carat and are measured in points.  One hundred points are equal to one carat, (1.00ct) whereas three-quarters of a carat is equal to, (.75ct).  Diamonds are usually purchased in “magic” numbers according to The Gemological Institute of America.  Those “magic” numbers are .25ct, .50ct, .75ct and 1.00ct. As it relates to size, a 1.00ct engagement ring vs. a .90ct is not discernable to the naked eye, but its cost is considerably more expensive.  When purchasing your diamond ring, just stay under the carat mark and you will save quite a bit of money.

Color is graded from D-F which is colorless to Z which is light yellow.

D-F              Colorless

G-J              Near Colorless

K-M             Faint Yellow

N-Z              Very Light to Light Yellow

After Z        Fancy Yellow

A great place to be when purchasing your diamond is in the Near Colorless range because the eye can hardly differentiate between Colorless to Near Colorless.  Your European Cut vintage style engagement ring can easily go to the M in the color range because the cut of this diamond camouflages its color beautifully and it will face up white.

Clarity ranges from Flawless to highly Imperfect according to The Gemological Institute of America and the grading takes into consideration the size of the inclusion, crystals or blemishes and its location. Grading is done with 10x magnification and assumes it is graded by a trained diamond specialist.  The grading is as follows:

FL                Flawless

IF                 Internally Flawless

VVS             Extremely difficult to see

VS                Slightly difficult to somewhat easy to see

SI                 Easy to see or eye visible

I                   Imperfect diamonds, heavily included and can affect durability

A great place to be all things considered is in the VS to SI1 range.

Cut refers to the faceting and not to shape – oval and princess cut, for example. Basically, when referring to the cut of a diamond, we can focus our thoughts on two different styles, the Round Brilliant and the European Cut diamond. The European Cut diamond, from the 19th century and earlier, is characteristically different from the 20th century Round Brilliant Cut. It has fewer facets and is hand cut in a way that enhances color and gives beautiful brilliance. 

The table of a European Cut is smaller than the Round Brilliant. The crown angles are higher making it heavier on top than the Round Brilliant of the same millimeter size. The thicker girdle is not  faceted. The pavilion is deeper and the culet is open.  It does not come to a point as it does today. It was designed to bring light in from the top and reflect back if looking at the diamond from the top. All of these factors taken into consideration improve the color. The European Cut is very popular now, as the Round Brilliant Cut diamonds cannot replace the unique and romantic antique diamond rings in vintage settings today.

Round Brilliant Cut diamonds were created by Marcel Tolkowsky and are cut to very specific calculations. They are more cone-shaped than the European Cut diamonds and have 58 or more facets.  The table is larger and the girdle, which is the section that separates the table from the pavilion, is faceted. The pavilion is not as high and it does not have a culet.  It comes to a point on the bottom. Polish and symmetry are also taken into consideration and every facet has the potential to change the rays of light giving it a lot of brilliance.

How to Tell If Your Diamond Is Real

How would I tell if my vintage diamond engagement ring is real? I bought it from an individual and I want to confirm what it is.

1. The first thing you can do is to take it to a reputable estate jewelry store to authenticate the age of your vintage diamond engagement ring. He or she can also tell you immediately if your diamond engagement ring is real and from what time period it is from.

2. You can breathe on the stone. If it fogs up, it is most likely not a diamond. A fake diamond will fog up immediately.

3. If the diamond is out of the mounting, drop the stone in a glass of water. If it floats it is not a diamond.

4. Draw a line on a piece of paper. Hold the stone over the line. If you can see the line through it, then it is not a diamond.

5. If you look into a diamond and you see flecks of black in it, it probably is a diamond. Picking the right diamond is an easy task. Just go to a reputable antique vintage jeweler. He or she can help you find a diamond that does not have any black spots inclusions to the naked eye. In fact, vintage diamonds are very often free of pique to the unaided eye.

6. Look to see if your stone is slightly greenish in color. It may be a moissanite, a man made diamond. Be careful. If you hold it over a line, you won’t see the line as you would with a cubic zirconia.

7. If your diamond is out of the mounting, a jeweler can weigh the stone for you. A diamond weighs 1.5 times more than a cubic zirconia.

8. If the diamond is being sold at a ridiculously low price, it probably is not a diamond. You have heard the saying, “You get what you pay for”. In this case, it applies.

Why Purchase Estate and Vintage Jewelry?

The lure of timeless beauty and sophistication enhance the unique design and rare craftsmanship of a previously owned piece of estate jewelry or vintage jewelry.

When buying Estate and vintage jewelry, you are cutting out the middlemen by not buying from manufacturers where gold and platinum is at a premium. When you find a trusted jeweler that specializes in this kind of jewelry, you have found a treasure. Value comes in many ways. Your jeweler buys from attorneys that handle estates, from auctions, from contacts close and far, and from individuals that come to the store to sell what they don’t need or want anymore.

It’s easy to find jewelry that is priced well and is unique. Once again, your estate jeweler has set up his/her store to carry the unique and one-of-kind. You can find things from as early as the Georgian Period, (1714-1830) to current times. 

Estate jewelry means previously owned jewelry and you have a lot to pick from. From Georgian, Victorian, Edwardian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco Periods to current times, each offers its unique design. The Georgian Period is known for its design of nature including flowers, birds, feathers and ribbon. It was also know for “en tremblant” where the item is mounted on a spring to make it look like, for example, a butterfly that trembles.

The Victorian Period is known for its flowers and animal themes which were delicate, as well as heavier jewelry made with colorful gemstones like peridot, amethyst, turquoise and garnet to name a few. The Art Nouveau Period is also known for its flowers, scrolls and shapes of women.

The Edwardian Period is known for its use of platinum with bows, scalloped edges and filigree that looked like lace. Art Deco Period is known for its filigree, especially in diamond engagement rings. Synthetic sapphires and emeralds were also used in all kinds of rings especially diamond engagement rings. When you see more modern jewelry, you will notice that it will have a heavier look with more geometric shapes and not quite as much detail. If you purchase designer rings you may get more detail but it won’t be as delicate and light as vintage jewelry.

You’ll find jewelry that is fairly priced, unique and contains finer craftsmanship when you buy estate and vintage jewelry. Nothing beats the flowing designs, for instance, of the Art Nouveau Period. If you are looking for value, uniqueness and craftsmanship, you need look no further. Estate and Vintage jewelry sale for you.