Engraved Style: Personalized Rings and Things

This is a little excerpt from a late Victorian book on good manners. The last phrase should be especially noted, as it reveals the source of modern sensibilities regarding engagement rings.

“The Responsibilities of a Bridegroom from a pecuniary point of view commence from the moment of his engagement. He must at once present the bride-elect with an engagement ring. A man of even moderate wealth finds no difficulty in choosing and purchasing a handsome ring costing from £50 to £100; but a poor man, possessing but a small income, is often put to more expense than he can conveniently afford in the matter of an engagement ring. He knows all the members of the bride’s family will sit in judgment upon it if it is but a poor bauble worth about £10, which is quite as much as he feels he is justified in spending; he knows that both it and himself will be regarded as very mean, or as conveying a not very inspiriting prospect of days to come. The engagement ring worn on the bride’s finger after marriage is a lasting memento, and if a poor one she will not be proud of it — neither will he. Rich men take the brides to choose engagement rings, expense being no object to them; but poor men cannot do this, as the choice might fall on gems beyond their means, therefore they make the choice themselves, according to the position of the families they are about to enter. If the standing is above their own, from a money point of view, the engagement rings have to be chosen in accordance with the jewels worn by members of such families, and a bridegroom would thus spend £40 at least on an engagement ring suitable to a lady so placed.

On the other hand, when men with small incomes marry the daughters of parents of a similar position to their own, the engagement rings given are not costly ones, and a ten-pound note, or even less, would cover the cost of these binding tokens. The wedding rings are within the means of all bridegrooms, be they ever so poor.”

The number 434 in relation to engraved rings may sound extremely enigmatic and somewhat similar to the cryptic approach to engraving your wedding ring . The mystery can be explained very easily. A popular Christian abstinence program that promotes its cause through wearing silver purity rings uses a passage from First Thessalonians 4.3-4 as a inspirational motto. The numbers are also featured on Christian purity rings that can be obtained through the program. These rings can typically only bought after attending one of the events sponsored by the program, also it is likely that there is some secondary market, as well as imitations (if you shop for jewelry at tiffany &co or at Zales you’re out of luck). The Scripture passage (1 Thessalonians 4.3-4) that is used for these purity rings goes like this:

NIV:

It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,

KJV:

For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;

Vulgate (Latin):

haec est enim voluntas Dei sanctificatio vestra ut abstineatis vos a fornicatione ut sciat unusquisque vestrum suum vas possidere in sanctificatione et honore

Learn more about purity rings!

Let’s take a look an another popular ring design that is predominantly popular among men: tire rings. As it can be clearly seen in the Men’s Stainless Steel Tire Ring pictured here, these rings are fashioned after the familiar look of a car tire. The engraved treads (like the ones you see on the wheel of a car, a truck or a motorcycle) go all around the ring, and the shiny tire detail stands out against the brushed surface.

Stainless steel is a very manly material, of course. It is also among the materials that are becoming increasingly popular in jewelry making. As one would imagine, tire rings are appropriate for most men, because most me love cars, own cars and often take pride in them. It is generally a very masculine design, as I said. Needless to say, an engraved tire ring is even more appropriate for guys (and gals!) who spend a lot of time behind the wheel and make their living driving trucks, taxi’s and so on.
And don’t forget that tire rings can also be engraved on the inside, adding another level of personalization and significance. You can engrave the name of the owner, the favorite car make or model, a monogram or a simple motto. May I say that if the ring wearer happens to prefer Volvo the brand name also serves as a motto, because this word means “I roll” in Latin.

Also, in some very extreme cases a tire ring may be the only ring that a guy would agree to wear. Well, since treaded rings are very discreet in their appearance you can use them for your wedding ceremony

I have to say that I am yet to figure out the reasons why exactly wave rings are as popular as they are. Most of the designs I see are reminiscent of Ancient Greek pottery ornamental patterns. Technically, the traditional rectilinear meander can be called a wave pattern, but usually rings display what clearly looks like actual waves. Such designs reveal strong similarities to the Chinese concept of Yin Yang. The circular shape in this case can be interpreted as relegated to the shape of the entire ring. My second guess is that there are many people who the wave rings a sea-faring talismans that can be worn by sailors, fishermen and their wives and girlfriends. If so, the idea of matching rings is enhanced by the design that features mirroring elements. Or could it be that people just like the way the undulating waves look? The sound of ocean waves are known to have a calming effect on most people…

I have looked at several different websites that offer applets for designing your own engagement rings. Amazon has a very attractive ring design feature that can help you achieve what you want through several simple stages. First, you narrow down the choices of available diamonds - by shape, price, cut, clarity, color and carat-size. All this is done on a single page, mind you! Then you have to pick the diamond you want from a list. After that you select the setting: the metal and the style. At that stage, the price will be shown and you can simply add the newly designed ring to your shopping cart. Whether you actually want to buy the ring you have designed, is entirely up to you. But it sure is fun to play with this applet! The only thing that is clearly missing is the ability to add a custom engraving to the design.

Create Your Own Ring!

Although not all friendship rings require engraving, this is certainly a type of jewelry that benefits from a clear statement that expresses the wearer’s sentiments or serves to remind about the occasion of its purchase. There are some design elements that emphasize the idea of friendship: the heart, the clasping hands of a claddagh ring, matching gems or birthstones etc. Apart from that, friendship rings very often bear engraved inscriptions and I am happy to make some suggestions that may help you design your own custom rings or search for rings with particular inscriptions available through retailers. As usual, I try to provide Latin versions of these friendship quotes, since I believe that Latin (along with occasional French) is a language well-suited for jewelry engraving.

• FRIENDSHIP (AMICITIA ) - Perhaps the most common inscription on friendship rings.
• FRIEND (AMICUS masc., AMICA fem.)
• FRIENDS (AMICI masc., AMICAE fem.)
• BEST FRIEND (AMICUS OPTIMUS masc., AMICA OPTIMA fem.)
• BEST FRIENDS FOREVER (AMICI OPTIMI IN AETERNUM masc., AMICAE OPTIMAE IN AETERNUM fem.)
• A FRIEND IS A SECOND SELF (ALTER IPSE AMICUS)
• HE IS A TRUE FRIEND, WHO, UNDER DOUBTFUL CIRCUMSTANCES, AIDS IN DEED WHEN DEEDS ARE NECESSARY (IS EST AMICUS QUI IN RE DUBIA RE JUVAT, UBI RE EST OPUS) - A quote from Plautus
• I SPARE NO EXPENSE SO LONG AS I CAN SERVE MY FRIEND (NIHIL PRETIO PARCO, AMICO DUM OPITULOR)
• THERE IS NOTHING WHICH, IN MY SENSES, I SHOULD PREFER TO A DEAR FRIEND (NIL EGO CONTULERIM JOCUNDO SANUS AMICO) - A quote from Horace.
• CONSULT YOUR FRIEND ON EVERYTHING, BUT FIRST OF ALL ABOUT YOURSELF (OMNIA CUM AMICO DELIBERA, SED DE TE IPSO PRIUS) - A quote from Seneca.
• TO HAVE THE SAME TASTES AND THE SAME DISLIKES - THIS IN FACT IS THE BASIS OF LASTING FRIENDSHIP (IDEM VELLE ET IDEM NOLLE EA DEMUM FIRMA AMICITIA EST) - A quote from Sallust.
• A LITTLE PLEDGE OF NO LITTLE FRIENDSHIP (PARVUM NON PARVAE AMICITIAE PIGNUS) - This motto seems perfect for a gift to a friend or a friendship ring!

It must be added that the quotes from Ancient authors always sound better in their original language rather than in translation. Also, some people simply choose to engrave their names on friendship rings. Good luck with your engraved rings and your friendships!

See also:

Promise Rings: History and Meaning