What is The Meaning of a Gold Wedding Dress?

Certain colors always had cultural and religious connotations. For instance, black is widely associated with death and thus isn’t the best color for a wedding dress.

Gold dress, however, is the perfect white wedding dress alternative. The meaning behind gold color is abundance, power, eternal life, wisdom, and inner strength.

Symbolism aside, gold is the perfect wedding dress color for a warm skin tone, making the complexion glow. Although a gold bridal dress isn’t as extravagant as red or green, it certainly won’t leave you unnoticed.

Wealth & Abundance

The gold color is widely associated with money (along with green). But it’s not like all money in the world is gold. Many countries use pink, yellow, blue, and other colors for banknotes and silver or brass for coins.

We link gold color with wealth and abundance because of the high value of this metal.

Gold always had a special monetary and symbolic significance for ancient civilizations, from Inca to Egyptians. People used it as money and jewelry material.

Some argue that gold is no longer as valuable as it used to be and that it’s simply the money of choice. Still, the metal’s relative scarcity and difficulty of extraction support its perception as a valuable commodity.

To this day, some currencies, such as the Ruble, are backed by gold to preserve their value stability since the gold supply is limited. And many investors believe that investing in gold is the best way to build their portfolios.

If that’s not enough, remember Scrooge McDuck or Smaug – both were crazy wealthy and held their entire wealth in gold coins.

Perhaps, you’ve also heard of the Golden Age, a period from Greek mythology mentioned in the works of Hesiod. However, the period wasn’t called Golden because people owned a lot of gold.

Instead, the term refers to a time of peace and prosperity when people didn’t even have to work to feed themselves since the earth provided everything they needed in abundance.

Thus, the gold color is the ultimate representation of wealth, abundance, and prosperity.

Glamour

In fashion, gold color has always been associated with glamour. Golden fabrics and details were nearly never used in fashion in post-war times or during economic decline, for instance, in the 1930s’ or 1940s’.

However, gold was extremely common in the 1920s fashion, when many countries experienced an economic boom. It was a time of rapid development, both technological and cultural. In short, people lived their best lives.

Fashion of that era can be described in three words: decadence, opulence, and glamour. Illustrations and rare photographs of that time showcase dazzling dresses with golden tassels and marabou boas.

We later saw the same obsession with gold in the 2000s’, when the likes of Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian were rocking going out tops and tight dresses covered in gold glitter.

Kareena Kapoor Khan’s 2002 crystal-bedazzled gold top look remains iconic to this day. A year earlier, the Destiny’s Child trio attended the Grammy’s matching slip dresses of different shades of gold.

Strength and Royalty

Gold has always been the metal of rulers. Ancient Egyptians believed gold to be a heavenly, indestructible metal associated with the God of Sun Ra.

Throughout Egypt’s entire history, gold was used to produce daily and ritual jewelry for Pharaohs. Although Egyptian land was rich in gold, it was a commodity for the most part owned by kings.

Early royal crowns were made from feathers, horns, and other materials acquired through hunting and war.

However, today, we typically envision crowns to be gold. Gold crowns have been used among European monarchy since the early Middle Ages.

The history of golden crowns stems from laurel wreaths used in Rome to symbolize victory and triumph. Over time, wreaths with real laurel branches were replaced with golden tiaras.

Magic

Gold glimmer has inspired people throughout history, boosting creativity and, sometimes, insatiable greed. But how can simple metal have so much influence over people, and how is gold different from silver or bronze in this regard?

Well, that’s a philosophical question, but people have long associated gold with magic. One of the reasons gold became so valuable in ancient times is the mythical properties people ascribed to it.

Ancient civilizations considered gold the symbol of purity and immortality because it doesn’t tarnish like other metals.

It was also associated with eternal life, representing the God of the Sun. Inca priests covered future kings with powdered gold, believing it would give them power.

Due to the connection with life and divinity, gold was also historically used in burial rituals to grant immortality to the deceased. The most famous example of this practice is the golden burial mask of Pharaoh Tutankhamen.

In Rome, people considered gold to have healing powers and applied it to wounds or carried it as protection against evil powers. On the other hand, gold was also used to inflict curses on enemies.

Gold connection with eternity and purity makes perfect sense in relation to a wedding dress.

A dress of this sparkling, magical color symbolizes endless love, innocence, and purity, just like a traditional white dress – but with more personality.

Wisdom

Historically, gold or champagne wedding dresses have often been worn to a woman’s second wedding or by mature women. It represented wisdom and maturity over the innocence symbolized by a white dress.

The reason for such a tradition isn’t clear. It may stem from the connection of gold with royalty, and rulers are meant to be wise. In religion, gold is also linked with knowledge and learning, integral elements of wisdom.

Confidence

Gold is not a humble color. It’s the color of royalty, wealth, influence, victory – how can it be modest?

But confidence isn’t a bad thing. A gold wedding dress will suit ambitious, extroverted brides who love to be the center of attention.

You can’t escape attention in such a unique and shiny bridal attire. Thus, if you’re a humble person, consider getting a less extravagant champagne wedding dress instead.

Excellence & Victory

Have you ever heard the phrase “gold standard”? It refers to something of exceptional quality, something that serves as a point of reference for other things or people in its class. This color embodies confidence and excellence.

Think of medals – the top-performing competition participants receive gold, silver, and bronze medals. The gold medal has been used as a sign of absolute excellence in the military and sports since the 18th century.

Indeed, a gold wedding dress may be considered a gold standard of modern bridal fashion. It’s brave and unique but not over the top, trendy but conservative. Only brides with excellent taste would choose a gold wedding dress.

Religious Implications

Gold color has numerous religious implications. In Christianity, gold represents the process of self-purification and divinity. A seeker may only “find gold” when his soul is free from greed, hate, and selfishness.

Furthermore, the lid of the box containing the Ten Commandments is made from gold.

Gold was also one of the three gifts the Magi brought to Jesus when he was born. Each of the gifts carries special symbolism, with gold representing his kingship on earth.

Icons and mosaics in Christian churches are often made in golden hues to represent the divinity of God. Gold is often referred to in the Bible, from the first prophetic book of Genesis to the last book of Revelations.

In Hinduism, gold a regarded as a metal of purity and knowledge. It’s believed to impact human aura and thus is used in meditation. Hindu Goddess of prosperity Lakshmi is portrayed dropping golden coins on the ground.

The largest gold hoard in the world is stored in the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Kerala. The treasures include gold statues, ornaments, coins, and a throne, all accumulated throughout centuries from Indian royal dynasties.

A gold wedding dress for a church ceremony is the perfect symbol of faith in God’s divinity and readiness to renounce one’s selfishness for the sake of another person.

The Sun & Stars

Gold is traditionally considered the color of the sun and stars, even though science states that the sun is white, and stars exist in nearly any color.

Gold was the symbol of the God of the Sun in many religions since ancient times, perhaps, due to the resemblance of gold’s shine and color to the sun.

Nowadays, some scholars argue that all gold on the earth occurred due to a star explosion millions of years ago. This could explain the metal’s scarcity.

Everyone has heard the phrase, “you are my sun, my moon, and my stars.” Well, a gold wedding dress is the very embodiment of this expression.