A ring set around the full circumference with diamonds or coloured gemstones, symbolising eternal love.
Gem set bands of this type have been known as early as circa 4000 years ago in Ancient Egypt however it was from the early 20th century that the popularity of these fabulous versatile bands really took off.
The precursor to the modern concept of eternity rings was called a ‘keeper’ ring, and was either a single band ring or a pair of matching rings worn on either side of the wedding ring to protect it from damage or loss. Most often keeper rings were plain bands, however around the middle part of the eighteenth century they began to appear set with a single row of matching gemstones.
Eternity bands of the early twentieth century were characterised by hand cut round old cut diamond and platinum designs, often with millegrain settings and foliate engraving along the sides of the band.
These rings can be chosen for many occasions- in 1954 Marilyn Monroe received a baguette cut diamond eternity band as a combination engagement and wedding ring from Joe DiMaggio, fully throwing open the functionality of such rings.
Today eternity rings are more popular than ever, with eternity bands being worn as wedding rings with that added bit of sparkle, to commemorate wedding anniversaries, to celebrating the birth of babies, as well as to mark any number of life’s other monumental occasions. Worn singly or stacked up on the finger you can decide on your style. As was perhaps best stated in a 1938 issue of Vogue, “What better emblem of unending devotion than eternity rings?”
View our current collection of Eternity rings
Read more about Eternity rings
