Design a class ring
The Claddagh Ring is a traditional Irish ring, exchanged as a token of friendship or worn as a wedding ring. Its history dates back to over 300 years to a fishing village in Ireland called the Claddagh. That is where the tradition of the Claddagh rings first started. The word Claddagh comes from the Irish term \'An Cladach\' which, means a \'flat stony shore\'.
There are two theories that explaining the first occurrence of the Claddagh Irish ring.
First Theory: Margaret Joyce inherited a huge amount of money from her late husband named Domingo de Rona. He was a wealthy Spanish merchant trading with Galway in Ireland. She later married the Mayor of Galway in 1596 and used her inherited wealth to construct many bridges in Connacht. The first Cladagh ring was alleged to be her providential reward that was apparently dropped by an eagle into her lap.
Second Theory: A native of Galway by the name of Richard Joyce was captured by the Algerians and sold as a slave to a Moorish goldsmith. Later in 1689 under the reign of William III of England there was a demand to release the British subjects. That was when Richard Joyce was released from slavery too. The Moorish goldsmith impressed with Richard Joyce offered him a major portion of his wealth and also his only daughter in marriage, if he agreed to stay in Algiers. The story goes that, Richard Joyce refused all the tempting offers and returned to his native city with the first Claddagh ring.
The Claddagh\'s distinctive design which, features two hands clasping a heart, and usually surmounted by a crown symbolizes qualities of love (the heart), friendship (the hands), and loyalty (the crown).However the meaning and significance of the Claddagh ring does not lie only in the crown, heart and clasping hands, it also extends to the hand on which the ring is worn and the direction in which the crown on the ring points. A married or engaged person is suppose to wear Claddagh rings on the left hand with the crown pointing away from the (the person wearing the ring) heart. While for a person willing to consider love the ring is traditionally worn on the right hand with the crown pointing away from the heart. Finally for a person who is not interested in starting a relationship the Cladagh ring is worn on the right hand with the crown pointing towards the heart.
Claddagh rings are available for both man and woman. This stunning claddagh ring for men is considered most meaningful jewels worn by a man. The male Claddagh ring is heavier than the claddag ring created for ladies. If the male Cladagh ring is made with a gemstone, the size of the gemstone would be much larger too. Because of the more active lifestyle followed by today\'s man and the fact that men are not as careful with their jewelry as ladies, a good gold weight for the male claddagh ring is a must. However the male Claddagh ring boasts of the same high end craftsmanship. The design for a male ring lay emphasis on being sturdy and durable, this comes without any compromise on good style and craftsmanship.
The classic Irish man claddagh ring has a minimum weight of 18 grams when the 8mm size gemstone is used. In cases where the bigger 10mm gemstone is used the weight increases proportionately to a good 20 grams. The good gold or sterling silver weight ensures that the claddagh gold man ring stays in shape and suits active lifestyle of a man. The good weight also allows the gemstone to be firmly mounted.
Although the Claddagh ring carries a very strong tradition it also has a very strong presence in the popular culture of today. Many famous characters mostly males have been seen adorning the Claddagh ring.
The Claddagh design has been used as a logo by the Scottish rock band Simple Minds, notably on the cover of their live album In the City of Light (1987).
A Claddagh ring appeared in the 2004 film Ladder 49 where the lead character shows his commitment to a romantic relationship by wearing a Claddagh ring for men. .
The Claddagh is also seen been worn by the male lead in the 1991 film Dead Again.
In the Buffy The Vampire Slayer season two episode, "Surprise", Angel gives a Claddagh ring to Buffy for her 17th birthday. In a later episode, another suitor also attempts to give Buffy a Claddagh, which she rejects. The popularity of the TV show led to an increased popularity of the rings. Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy, took some liberties with the traditional meanings, reinterpreting them somewhat to better suit the storyline of the show.
Throughout the movie Clerks II, Brian O\'Halloran\'s character Dante Hicks wears a Claddagh ring. Although he is engaged, he wears it in a manner denoting the wearer is in a non-serious relationship, foreshadowing the demise of his relationship in the movie. Also, if one looks closely, it is clear that Dante is also wearing a Claddagh ring in Clerks I.
Musician Jim Morrison and author Patricia Kennealy-Morrison exchanged Claddagh rings At their Celtic Pagan hand fasting. A picture of the rings was included on the cover of Kennealy-Morrison\'s book, Strange Days: My Life With and Without Jim Morrison, and the Claddaghs can be seen in most of her author photos as well. Similarly in a scene loosely based on the above ceremony, Val Kilmer and Kathleen Quinlan, as fictional versions of Morrison and Kennealy-Morrison, are also seen exchanging the rings in Oliver Stone\'s movie, The Doors.
In Ted Demme\'s 1998 film, Monument Ave., a number of the Irish-American characters wear Claddagh rings. However, they all seem to wear them in the manner usually associated with marriage, even though none of the characters seen wearing the rings are married.
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