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History has it that Pope Innocent III was responsible for the customization of two ring types that are very popular today: wedding and engagement rings. It was him who insisted that there should be a waiting period between engagement and marriage. Because both of the aforementioned events were considered as contracts, these rings were insignias that legally seal these deals. Prior to the 13th century, it was only the engagement ring that was given as a token in Europe, though the history of wedding ring was far older.

About five thousand years ago, the Egyptians have already used reed or hemp rings as symbols of eternity, considering that rings were circle in shape that has no beginning and no end. The stone cut types that we know today such as the princess cut was still not popular during those periods. During the biblical times, great dowry gifts were given in the betrothal of couples. It was therefore assumed that rings, especially those that are considered as precious metals, were substituted for expensive dowries.

In the Roman period, rings were used for two primary purposes""to seal deals and to insinuate ownership. High ranking officials wore gold rings, while ordinary citizens wore iron rings as a sign of their position in the community. The rings worn by ordinary citizens at that time were similar to the large rings that held the keys to the household. As such, it has been regarded that if a Roman citizen presented his bride with an iron marriage ring, he was therefore giving her the key to his household as well as all his worldly goods.

It was in 16th century England that the use of wedding ring was officially moved from the right hand to the left hand. It was assumed that such change was done in order to show a women her place in the society, since the right hand was acknowledged as the hand of power. Accordingly, as we are all aware of, the wedding ring is placed on the third hand of the left finger because it was concluded that such finger on the left hand is where the vein of love known as vena amoris is located; hence, as the ring signifies love, it was only appropriate to place it on the finger that is directly connected to the heart. Today, many countries especially in the western region wear their wedding and engagement rings on the left hand, although there are also countries that traditionally wear their rings on the right hand like Poland and Ukraine.

Among the Puritans, rings were thought as symbols of heathen that is why they did not use them for their wedding ceremonies; instead they used marriage thimbles during their wedding vows. The Victorians were the ones who welcomingly embraced the custom of wedding rings and accentuated them with flowers and hearts. The Edwardians on the other hand, added leaf and other ornate patterns, which all started art deco rings. It was then that the use of gemstones were integrated on rings, and more likely the use of stone cut types such as the princess cut and emerald cut had truly began.

Wedding and engagement rings were first worn by men during World War II. The first men to wear such rings were the soldiers going off to war; they used the rings as reminders of their waiting wives and partners. Today, wedding rites are also treated as double ring ceremonies. Meaning to say, both the bride and the groom wear wedding rings to show their commitment and love, though the engagement ring is still limited among women.