The always superduper Sterlingspider sent me a link to some truly fascinating rings last night. And by fascinating, I mean kind of icky but also sort of sweet in a weird way. A while back, five couples in the UK said “I do” and exchanged rings not of gold, but of bone.
Personally, I think it would be cool to get rings made of fossilized dino bones. But these lovebirds were swapping their own DNA in a very real way, because the aforementioned rings were grown using bits of bone tissue harvested from project participants’ jaws. The resultant symbols of their love were an idea hatched by BioJewellery, a group that “aims to create public dialogue with emphasis on communication and the accessibility of the scientific processes involved.”
The couples who took part in the bone-ring project helped design their own bands, though the one shown above is a mock up made using cow bone and sterling silver. Romantic? Maybe. But the technique used to grow the bones isn’t just useful for making jewelry…it apparently holds great promise as a way to grow new bone material for patients who need replacements. That, I can certainly get behind.
Now all they need is to add dna carbon diamonds for the truly personal wedding set:
http://diamondsignature.com/inventory.php
When I first saw this headline, I thought that you had meant to write “Humane Ivory”. “Ha ha ha”, I thought, “how creepy would it be if it actually was Human Ivory?”…and then I read the article and whoa. Cool technology though! Also, what does the inscription say? All I can read is “ab intro”, which sounds like a class at 24-hour fitness, not a declaration of love.
Not my style for jewelry, I must admit, but the potential in medical terms for this technology is astounding.
I don’t think it is any weirder than carrying a lock of someone’s hair in a locket. I do think it is probably way too expensive though!
I have to note that this doesn’t have any medical promise; this came out of research with medical promise, but ventures like this don’t do anything to advance the state of research.
Good distinction, Go Amie. It is the technique of bone growth (not this particular application) that holds great promise.
Well it does fit with Genesis 2:23, where Adam calls Eve: “bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh.” In this context I think it could be regarded as pretty romantic.
Ugh. I’m sorry, but every time I see this entry, it just grosses me out. Completely and totally. As medical research? Very cool. As a romantic gesture: one gigantic ICK.
Hmmm, I think I would rate that up there with wearing vials of each other’s blood around your neck. Not romantic to me.
yeh this creeps me out. ick
No way. This is awesome! I’d do it. But then, I’ve made the doctors let me keep all my x-rays.