Men's Wedding Rings, Character Actors, Unicorns, and more
Things I looked up recently
…and we’re back! Yes, it’s been almost exactly two months since I’ve brought you a round up things I’ve Googled and sundry fun facts. So I won’t dilly-dally with an intro, and we’ll get right into it.
When did men start wearing wedding rings?
Lately, all of my algorithms are bringing me wedding content. I don’t know why, I’ve literally never been to a wedding as an adult, I’m not anywhere close to getting married myself, and I try to make it a point not to interact with wedding content.
Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit feel differently.
Anyways, as a result of seeing all of this wedding content, the concept of engagement rings and wedding rings has been something I have given thought to. And as someone who is a sucker for a good period drama, and also pays way too much attention to the accessories of TV show characters, I’ve noticed that men, historically, didn’t wear wedding rings. They tended to wear signet rings, especially wealthy men. But, in the 21st century, a lot of married men do wear wedding rings. Which got me thinking … when did that shift happen?
The tradition of married women wearing wedding rings can be traced back to ancient Greece and ancient Rome, with the Romans starting the tradition of wearing the ring on the left hand. But, many sources point to World War II as the era when the trend of married men wearing wedding rings really took off, particularly in Western cultures. At first, it was more popular with men in the military to have wedding rings, to demonstrate their commitment to their wives and families while they were abroad at war. But as the 20th century went on, the practice became adopted by civilian men as well.
Sources: BBC, Wedding Shoppe, Inc.
What is a character actor?
So, the new Superman movie came out this weekend, but unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably been seeing promo for the movie for the past several months. A lot of the TikToks, news articles, IG posts, etc., that I’ve been seeing have been around Nicholas Hoult’s performance as Lex Luthor. I’ve recently consumed no fewer than five pieces of media that have called Nicholas Hoult the “best character actor of his generation”.
But what is a character actor? I feel like I’ve heard this term thrown out a lot - referring to actors like Jennifer Coolidge, Walton Goggins, and Lance Reddick (R.I.P.). Obviously, I turned to Google, and I learned that a character actor is an actor who doesn’t typically play lead roles, rather plays a lot of eccentric and unusual supporting characters.
The Wikipedia article on “character actors” says that typically, “the names of character actors are not featured prominently in movie and television advertising on the marquee, since a character actor's name is not expected to attract film audiences”… but where does that leave actors like Nicholas Hoult or Walton Goggins, who are quite well-known, respected, lusted after, etc.? Let me know what you think!
Sources: Wikipedia, Reddit, The Actors Pulse
Did a woman design the Brooklyn Bridge?
I recently caught up on the Gilded Age prior to season 3 coming out. In season 2, one of the storylines is around Larry Russell’s efforts to placate his dad while still following his dreams of being an architect by getting involved with the building of the Brooklyn Bridge. After some snooping, he discovers that the guy who’s supposed to be leading the project is actually M.I.A. and his wife, Emily Roebling, is actually running the show! Because this is the late 19th century, Larry is absolutely flabbergasted that this woman has so much architectural and engineering knowledge, even more so when he learns that she was so knowledgable despite never having a formal education in engineering.
But how much of this is actually rooted in history? Well, I looked it up, and the Brooklyn Bridge’s principal designer/engineer was a guy named John A. Roebling. He died, so the project was taken over by his son, Washington Roebling. Washington had an accident, and was bedridden. But, the project was far from complete, so his wife, Emily took over. As her husband’s private secretary, she had all of the institutional knowledge needed to carry the project through to the end.
So no, she didn’t design the Brooklyn Bridge, but she did manage the project and see it through to completion. Many say that without her stepping in, the bridge may have never been completed.
The best part about this story for me? Her husband never, ever tried to take credit for everything Emily did. He was super outspoken about how she was an integral part of the project and deserving of recognition. Yes, I know that the bar is low, but considering that this was in 19th century America, I’m pretty impressed that Washington gave his wife the recognition she deserved!
Sources: Encyclopaedia Britannica, History.com
Why is the unicorn the national animal of Scotland?
I may have mentioned that I went to Scotland recently? (Just kidding, I know that I’ve probably exhausted all of you from how much I’ve gone on about my trip. And it’s been nearly two months). Well, one thing that I heard from every tour guide, and saw in every guidebook/website/article was that the unicorn is the national animal of Scotland. I saw this with my own eyes while visiting Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where the coat of arms of a unicorn and a lion was in full display.
So, why is the unicorn the national animal? And when did this become a thing?
The unicorn is a symbol of purity and power in Celtic mythology, and many of the ancient inhabitants of Scotland are grouped into the category of “Celtic people”.
Unicorns were first introduced into the Scottish royal coat of arms in the mid-1500s, but was adopted by the Stewart/Stuart dynasty earlier on, with King William I adding it to his coat of arms in the 1200s, and later, King James II making it part of the royal coat of arms in the 1400s. King James VI/I ended up adjusting the royal coat of arms to include a lion, the symbol of England, to symbolize that he was the sovereign of both kingdoms.
I was unable to find an official “decree” or anything similar on the unicorn becoming the national animal, but it seems like over time, it was just accepted as such. These days, April 9 is celebrated as National Unicorn Day.
Sources: National Trust for Scotland, Wilderness Scotland, Smithsonian Magazine
What is a thimble?
There’s a lot of crap in souvenir shops. Truly useless items. But recently, on a trip to Newport, R.I., my sister and I encountered an item that we thought took the cake for uselessness. A teeny, tiny cup, just about the size of those little rubber erasers you put on the end of your pencil in elementary school. Appears to be ceramic-ish, with a teeny illustration of a lighthouse and even teenier letters spelling out “Newport".
Then we saw the display’s label. This teeny, tiny cup was actually a “thimble”. Needless to say, despite having 3.5 college degrees between the two of us, my sister and I did not know what a thimble was.
A thimble is actually relatively useful (at least compared to the other offerings of a souvenir shop), as it is a cover that you put on your finger to protect it from needles while sewing. It’s a piece of technology that’s been used the 10th century, and the word “thimble” actually derives from the word “thumb”!
Sources: Merriam Webster, Wikipedia
+ BONUS FUN FACTS
Coffee is a fruit (Source: Nescafe.com)
The term “riding shotgun” refers to 19th century “Wild West” America, where someone with a shotgun would sit alongside a stagecoach driver to look out and protect against bandits or other threats (Source: Reader’s Digest)
Octopuses have three hearts (Smithsonian Magazine)
A cloud can weight a million pounds (Source: USGS)
Estivation is the opposite of hibernation — it’s a state of dormancy in summer as a means of escaping the hot weather. Sign me up. (Source: Encylopaedia Britannica, Wikipedia)