A PRIMER ON ENGAGMENT RINGS
“Better a diamond with a flaw
than a pebble without one”
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The significance of diamond
rings begins with the shape of
the ring itself. The circular
form is said to be symbolic of
eternity, as rings have no
beginning and no end. It
therefore represents a love
with no beginning or end. The
diamond, being the hardest
substance in nature,
symbolizes the
indestructibility of the union.
In fact, the word diamond is
derived from the Greek word
adamas, which means
unconquerable. It is believed
that the ring is worn on the
fourth finger of the left hand
because the first three fingers
symbolize the Father, Son, and
the Holy Spirit. The tradition
of the wedding or anniversary
bands is based on an old
English custom of “Keeper
Rings”, which were worn to
protect the engagement ring
and, symbolically, the
marriage.
BACKGROUND
When buying a diamond, it is
vital to keep in mind the Four
C’s—Cut, Color, Clarity,
and Carat weight.
When considering the cut of
the stone, one must be familiar
with actual parts of the stone.
These are: the crown, the top
portion of the stone; the
pavilion, the bottom portion of
the stone; and the girdle, the
edge or border of the stone.
As a general rule of
thumb, the crown should
be roughly one third the
size of the pavilion depth.
If a diamond is cut too deep,
all of the light is lost through
the sides, and the diamond
will appear dark in the center.
If the diamond is cut too
shallow, light leaks through
the bottom and the stone
seems dull.
An ideally proportioned
diamond will exhibit
maximum brilliance by
allowing maximum light to be
reflected back in order to
reveal the most sparkle.
When evaluating color, it is
important to become familiar
with the Gemological Institute
of America’s (GIA) color
grading scale for diamonds.
The classification scale begins
at D, which denotes complete
color