Diamond engagement rings are a recent invention. It was only in the late 1930s or early 1940s that De Beers began mounting diamonds in silver and platinum settings, and selling them to the public as a way of committing yourself to a bride. At first, these diamond cluster rings were only given to brides from wealthier families. The idea caught on quickly, though, because it solved a major problem that diamond rings had been facing for years. This problem had been growing since the 1920s.
