The ring Prince William gave Kate before she graduated is rather symbolic

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Prince William has gifted Kate Middleton with some beautiful and symbolic pieces of jewellery over the years, including earrings for their first Christmas as a married couple, Princess Diana’s engagement ring of course, and a diamond eternity ring purchased just after Prince George’s birth.

This is a tradition that dates back to when the couple first met, if you take into account a gift the Prince gave Catherine just before she graduated from St Andrews in 2005.

The rose gold ring is pictured below, as she wore in at the graduation ceremony. It is a rose gold band and is adorned with birth stones.

(Image credit: 2005 Tim Graham)

According to Eddie LeVian, CEO of jewellers LeVian, the ring was 'extra romantic'.

He told the Express, 'Pearls are a June birthstone – William was born in June – and they symbolise love, purity, humility, and innocence. Garnets are the birthstone for January when Kate was born. It signifies protection and promotes confidence and mental clarity.'

Not only did the ring show commitment from William, but it also showed his confidence in Kate becoming his partner and the future Queen.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.