Ah, the snake ring. Symbol of life and lust and Adam and Eve, of temptation. What does it do? Does it protect the wearer from temptation? Or does it tempt? People in the past knew very well what it meant to do. And straying from the path of rightiousness was not part of it. Although some say that in obscure circles the snake symbolized quite a different thing..
With its cold blood, its hiss and venom and a fatal mesmerizing gaze, the snake was often seen as an untrustworthy and dark creature.
But throughout centuries, even long before Christianity was first introduced, snake symbols were an important element in religion and in jewellery. Representing healing an rebirth to the Greeks and the Romans, it was also known as a symbol of eternity, a snake eating its own tail. It is known that the Egyptians considered the cobra snake a God. In the imagery of Cleopatra she can be seen as a patron, with crowns bearing images of the cobra God called Nehebkau. In Victorian times the importance of the snake as a symbol re-emerged, when Prince Albert gave his bride to be a serpent engagement ring. Here, the ring meant eternal love and wisdom.