The ring on the left has an open back whereas the ring on the right has a closed back. All of our rings are solid sterling, 14 or 18 karat gold, or platinum (not plated).
When shopping our collection of custom engraved signet rings for women or signet rings for men, an important consideration is whether or not you would like an open back or solid back. We recently redesigned our signet ring designs and offer most of our classic designs in your choice of a closed/solid back or an open/hollow back. It can be difficult to describe in words what this means exactly, but the picture above illustrates it perfectly. The ring on the left has an open back, and the one on the right has an solid back.
Mainly, a solid back means that the ring has more gold and the space behind the face is closed. Because this signet ring type is heavier and has more gold, a closed back ring is more expensive. It is also more substantial and is overall a more quality piece, which is why we often recommend solid back signet rings to our customers, especially if they interested in hand engraving on the face of the ring.
However, an open back ring also has its advantages. An open back basically means that the part behind the ring’s face is hollowed out. This means there is less gold, and therefore the open ring is more affordable and more lightweight.
Whichever style of back you prefer, we hope this post about open ring designs and closed back designs helps you understand this important design distinction to our collection of signet rings. Hopefully, this makes shopping for classic signet rings, like the Fleur de Lis signet ring easier! Please contact a deBebians jewelry expert at your convenience if you would like additional information or have any questions.
Update: This article was originally published on March 18, 2014. It was updated with new information and images on August 23, 2019.