History of Colored Stones in Engagement Rings

Colored stones have been used in engagement rings at least since the Renaissance. At that time, the color of the stone used was thought to lend specific attributes to the ring itself. Red stones, like rubies, were thought to be representative of passion and the heart. Blue stones, meanwhile, (like sapphires) were believed to be connected with spirituality, faithfulness and the higher spheres; green stones like emeralds served as a guarantor of perpetual love. At the time, diamonds were extraordinarily rare, and were almost never used by anyone but royalty.

It was only in the late nineteenth century that the discovery of South American diamonds brought these stones within reach of the middle classes. This newfound availability, combined with the stones’ past association with illustrious nobles, rendered them ubiquitous.

Of course, what goes around…

Lately, colored stones have again begun appearing in engagement rings. Ironically, people are turning to these now-exotic stone options precisely because their inclusion can make an engagement ring seem less ordinary. In this sense, colored stones are serving exactly the same purpose that diamonds did after their widespread introduction. The choice of colored stones for such an important ring makes sense in many ways: rubies and sapphires, for example, rate a #9 on the hardness scale, as opposed to diamonds’ #10. Whether accompanied by diamonds or standing alone, these colorful options can make your most important jewelry purchase as personal as it is timeless.