Vintage Diamond Engagement Ring – Mining the Past for Today’s Styles

Nothing says “forever after” as well as enduring past styles: clothing, architecture or jewelry. When shopping for a diamond engagement ring for our beloved, one of the most popular styles is the antique or vintage diamond engagement ring.

People are drawn to different styles reflecting different times. Considering only the last 200 years, beginning with Georgian England and the “Empire” style of Napoleonic France, the most sought-after engagement settings are the Victorian, Edwardian and Art Deco, which reflect the differing cultures of those years.

The Napoleonic Era is associated with an intense interest in all things Egyptian, after the discovery and translation of the Rosetta Stone. We can see this in the Napoleonic Talisman which is faithful to the Egyptian Sphinx, from which it was derived.

We can see the influence of Egypt in the symbols Napoleon chose for himself and his reign. Just as the scarab was a symbol of resurrection for the Egyptians, Napoleon chose a gold honey bee as an emblem of his new order:honey as the nectar of the gods.

This signet ring, one of the few surviving, is set with 10.5 carats of beautiful old mine-cut diamonds. The milgrain decoration is a clear sign of the first wave of antique style fashion in jewelry.