Organizing a wedding celebration is like creating a kaleidoscope. We replace the tiny colored pieces with traditions, rituals, and other elements, each time creating a new, vibrant picture of the most beautiful day of our lives—our wedding.
However, everything the bride and groom (or the wedding planner) habitually include in the routine of this festive day, be it releasing doves, spreading a towel, and much more, has a historical background and sometimes unexpected significance. This also applies to the customary breaking of glasses after the wedding ceremony. Is this wedding tradition really so simple, and does it hide anything more than the banal “Breaking dishes brings good luck” ?
Modern interpretation
The tradition of breaking wedding glasses, which is so widespread in many countries, has various meanings.
• In some cultures, the fragility of glass is compared to the fragility of the soul and human relationships (particularly marital ones). Therefore, the underlying reason for newlyweds breaking glasses is to demonstrate to them the fragility of the marriage they have just created. In fact, this tradition in these cultures suggests that if the bride and groom break glasses, they will not break their marriage, recognizing its value.
• In other cultures, on the contrary, a broken glass symbolizes the end of a former, single life . Just as glasses cannot be glued back together, returning them to their original appearance, so the young couple who broke them cannot return to their former wild freedom. For marriage is meant to bind their lives together forever.
These two diametrically opposed interpretations exist within a seemingly simple tradition. And its historical roots are even more profound.
Historical subtext
For our ancestors, breaking pots and dishes always heralded good fortune. Village weddings, for example, were celebrated with the smashing of clay pots. This supposedly shattered the chastity of the young woman entering into married life and brought marital happiness upon her. But beyond weddings, other major occasions were also celebrated with this lucky tradition.
There are no precise historical references, but it is quite possible that the modern wedding ritual of breaking wine glasses originated from the tradition of smashing bottles/glasses against the side of a ship being launched for the first time .
In ancient Jewish traditions, this element of wedding celebrations also existed, but it had an ambiguous, dual meaning. On the one hand, breaking wedding glasses signified good fortune. But a broken glass in a handkerchief by the groom also symbolizes the intertwined joy and sorrow that beset the couple along their journey. Furthermore, one Talmudic legend describes how the groom's father, amidst the boisterous wedding celebrations, deliberately broke a valuable vase in full view of everyone. He explained this by saying that one must moderate one's joy; this is the only way to ward off misfortune.
Many other peoples have also held ancient beliefs that breaking dishes wards off evil . For example, in the Middle Ages, after the main toast to a newlywed couple, the newlywed would smash his glass against the wall. This demonstrated his power and protected the family from evil spirits, who were believed to be harmed by the sound of broken dishes.
Related customs
Breaking glasses isn't the only tradition among our compatriots. Since we become extremely superstitious on our wedding day (some of us), we perform all sorts of rituals and omens designed to strengthen the future marriage, even if they contradict each other. This also applies to traditions involving glasses.
For example, there's a tradition of tying a ribbon around the newlyweds' glasses (usually after the first toast). This gesture symbolizes the union of the spouses' souls and the inviolability of their marriage.
There's also a belief that the newlyweds' glasses from their wedding feast should be preserved as heirlooms , to be used to celebrate each anniversary by drinking champagne from these same flutes. Thus, intact, carefully preserved wedding glasses are a symbol of a lovingly guarded home.
Incidentally, the tradition of breaking glasses itself has many associated superstitions. For example:
• the more fragments, the more happiness;
• the smaller the fragments, the greater the likelihood of the couple having their first child, a son.
Types of glasses for weddings
Since wedding glasses have many “missions,” the bride and groom prepare several sets for different purposes:
As for the glasses to break , people prefer both inexpensive goblets (so they don't feel bad about breaking them) and crystal ones. Crystal, again based on ancient superstitions, is believed to ward off evil. They can be embellished a bit, but generally, no special attention is paid to the appearance of these glasses.
• Wine glasses for the registry office are essential for newlyweds who want to immediately toast their newlywed family with their guests after the ceremony. Practical and inexpensive glasses are generally chosen for this purpose.
• For a photo shoot of the newlyweds, if necessary, they take “photogenic” glasses – beautiful, decorated ones, or those that will stand on the festive table.
• Reception glasses are often the ones the couple keeps. Therefore, the appearance of these wedding attributes receives the greatest attention. They are usually decorated (or purchased already decorated). There are so many variations of wedding glass decor that it's not worth mentioning. This topic deserves a separate article.
