The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-02-20
IRON BETROTHAL
 RING WASuSED.. ] IN GREEK CHURCH
History of Circlets Shows
 4 Many Interesting S Facts.

Ewes little unsaid on the subject of
 4es, their making, history and sen
 fa% %ental significance. F
 E4n the chapter on wedding and be-
 4ha1 rings the author comes nearer ] to~heart Interest than in any other. 1 H& has delved deeply into the history l &8$thef metal band, symbol of unity, &1v recognized in most lands as an fential property in the marriage cer- {Skpny,
 E8pecial wedding rings, according to f& anthor, were not used at an early iod. the espousal ring doing duty is3llp in the wedding ceremony. At "a ARrN Nperiod signet was set in the E4erotha1 ring, to signify that the wife E1& to have the right of sealing up the 4&dsehold goods. and occasionally a 4MaH key formed part of the ring, F 11th like significance. Somewhat distantly related to the 4etothal or wedding ring were those $fven by lovers to the objects of their 4fectiOxls. Of such a ring the Ro- 1pan rpGetf Oydd wrote-"a ring soon destined to eicircle the finger of a Beautiful girl, ring having no worth (xcept the love of the giver. ."5 n The custom of placing the betrothal or wedding ring on the. fourth finger seems to owe it's origin to the fancy that a special nerve, or vein, ran di- fectly from that finer to the heart. It has been conjectured. however, that this was not the real source of the custom, but that in the church service l 1t was usual for the Christian priest to E touch three fingers successively with Ethe ring. saying, Tn the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, 2 and then to place the ring upon thef last finger touched We know that this was the custom < in the bestowal of episcopal rings and later with wedding rings
 During the reign of George I of England it was not unusual to wear fthe wedding ring on the thumb, all though 1t had been 4praced on the fourth finger at the wedding cere- [ mony Possibly the custom may have Earisen from wearing exceptionally large wedding rings, a fashion of the iatime.
 '. Tn France. from the 11th to the 18th centuries. the ecclesiastical ritual nuptiaI ring be worn on the right 461A0, HI l14OSI Ol CllO Q1OCSScS OIl lllG middle finger }, but in that of Ldege on the fourth finger. A gold S41ngs exac ctIyA like our we'd ding ring bf to-day. found in an an cient burial place at Salisbury, fns Eng { land, wassfound: :bn a. section sof finger bone from the left hand. The relic was believed to date from the seventh century, ss,s
 Interesting inscriptions appear on certain Greek betfothal rings preserv- cd in the British Museum. On gold ring of the fourth century, B. ., are
 words that have been translated as ITO her who exoAls not only in virtue. and prudence, but, also in wisdom The custom of bestowing a ring on la bethrothed bride has been traced back in Rome to the second century
 before the coming of Christ. Plain iron rings were first used for this
 purpose, and they were still favored for hetfothals when the custom of wearing gold rings had become com {! Tn the course of the second century mon among certain classes of Romans. in our era, and parhaps earlier, gold rings came into use in betrothals. That the nuptial ring was of gold. in the second century, is plain.
 Perhaps the earliest reference in
 Christian literature to the betrotha.l ring is in Tertullian's writings, dating
 from the end of the second century, A. D., wherein he says: "In former
 times women knew nothing of gold ex-
 cept the single betfothal ring, which
 was placed upon one of their fingers by the fance."
 s.
 One of the rare marriage rings or
 love tokens preserved since the early Christian era bears incised male and female busts. facing each other. Be- low Is a cross. This ring Is of By zanttne workmanship and dates from >about 40 A. D.
 The Romans introduced the usage of the betrothal ring among the an- cfent Germans. In 642-3 the signifi- canoe of the betrothal ring was noted : in the laws of the visigoths, it being ! decreed that when the espousal ring
 had been given, the marriage contract scould be broken only by mutual con- ssent.
 An interesting wedding ring of the
 Gallo Roman period, dating probably
 from the fifth century, A D., was un- earthed in 1850 at Mulsanne, Depart ment of Sarthe, France. It was of.
 gold. weighing over three-fourtfis of an ounce. On it was engraved the figures of a warrior resting on his lance and woman holding out her karms to him.
 The use of the ring in the marriage ritual of the Greek church half a cen tury before the capture of Constanti- nop1e by the Turks in 1453 has been described by the Archbishop of Thes- sa1onica.
 The officiating priest laid upon the altar two rings, one of iron to sym bolize masculine force, the other of gold typifying feminine purity. The rings were consecrated After bene- diction and prayer the priest gave the iron ring to the woman, as from the man, and the gold ring to the man, as from the woman. He then changed the rings three times in adoration> of
 the Holy Trinity, and joined the hands fof the couple, as signifying their unity
 in Christ.
 The custom of exchanging rings sur wives in the Russian branch of the Eastern church. The rubric states that the brides ring shall be of silver
 to show that she is the less honored
 vessel, while the hridegroom's shall be of gold. Tn modern times Russian
 brides have discarded the silver ring,
 and are given gold Til old Russian
 C1rgt0su was for fhe hlls1,ar r1d to yUea r.