Anniversary Gifts
Many of us just aren't sure what is the appropriate gift to buy for an upcoming anniversary, so we provided a chart for you to give you an idea. When you stop by the store, our associates can also assist you finding the right gift for the occasion.
The tradition originated in medieval Germany where if a married couple lived to celebrate the twenty fifth anniversary of their wedding, the wife was presented by her friends and neighbours with a silver wreath, partly to congratulate them for the good fortune that had prolonged the lives of the couple for so many years and partly in recognition of the fact they must have enjoyed a fairly harmonious relationship, on celebration of the fiftieth the wife received a wreath of gold. These anniversaries were known as the silver wedding-day and the golden wedding-day. Over time the number of symbols has expanded and the German tradition was to assign gifts which had direct connections with each stage of married life.*
The Traditional U.S. and Modern versions were compiled by librarians at the Chicago Public Library:
| Year | Traditional | Modern |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Paper | Clocks |
| 2nd | Cotton | China |
| 3rd | Leather | Crystal, Glass |
| 4th | Linen, Silk | Appliances (electrical) |
| 5th | Wood | Silverware |
| 6th | Iron | Wood objects |
| 7th | Wool, Copper | Desk sets/Pen & Pencil sets |
| 8th | Bronze | Linens, Lace |
| 9th | Pottery, China | Leather goods |
| 10th | Tin, Aluminium | Diamond jewelry |
| 11th | Steel | Fashion jewelry, accessories |
| 12th | Silk | Pearls, Colored gems |
| 13th | Lace | Textiles, Furs |
| 14th | Ivory | Gold jewelry |
| 15th | Crystal | Watches |
| 16th | Silver Holloware | |
| 17th | Furniture | |
| 18th | Porcelain | |
| 19th | Bronze | |
| 20th | China | Platinum |
| 21st | Brass, Nickel | |
| 22nd | Copper | |
| 23rd | Silver plate | |
| 24th | Musical Instruments | |
| 25th | Silver | Silver |
| 30th | Pearl | Diamond |
| 35th | Coral, Jade | Jade |
| 40th | Ruby | Ruby |
| 45th | Sapphire | Sapphire |
| 50th | Gold | Gold |
| 55th | Emerald | Emerald |
| 60th | Diamond, (Yellow) | Diamond |
| 65th | Star Sapphire (Gray) | |
| 70th | ||
| 75th | Diamond, Gold | Diamond, Gold |
| 80th | Oak |
*Information gathered from Wikepdia.com
Modern Jewelers is located on Bay Street in Beaufort, SC