[Avodah] Beyom Chasunaso

[kennethgmiller at juno.com]

R' Micha Berger wrote:
> The minhag is because she might overestimate the value and
> thus her acceptance would be a meqach ta'us. ... There was
> a time when Ashkenazi men gave their wives far from simple
> and easy to price rings, with a house sculpted on top. Here
> is a 14th cent example <http://tinyurl.com/2dxmzn>.

Thanks for that picture, but what I'm REALLY interested in, is an example of a ring which *IS* "simple and easy to price". Making the ring just a tiny bit thinner or thicker can make a huge difference in the price. As can a different alloy (14k vs 18 k, for example).

In other words, if we are going to ban certain kinds of rings because they are difficult for an amateur to appraise, then I cannot imagine what sort of rings would be exempt from that ban. Honestly, can someone show me a ring which most women would appraise accurately? Or close to accurately? Or even somewhat accurately? Or even somewhat better than a wild guess.

(PS: I just asked my wife and daughter about this, to see if maybe I'm just a stupid male. Nope. One said, "I have no idea what a piece of jewelry is worth." The other said, "If the kallah cares what it is worth, she can just ask her chosson, or they can pick it out together.")

Akiva Miller