If you’ve ever stopped to trace the curve of a heart-shaped necklace around someone’s neck—whether it’s your own, a friend’s, or a family member’s—you’ve likely wondered why this simple, rounded symbol still holds such power in a world full of flashy, trend-driven jewelry. As a necklace supplier who’s spent the last decade sourcing and curating pieces that people actually wear (and hold onto for years, not just seasons), I can tell you that the heart shape isn’t just a pretty design—it’s a container for the quiet, complex emotions that shape how we love, connect, and mark the moments that matter most. What started as a symbol with vague, ancient roots has evolved into something personal, adaptable, and always meaningful, even when the times and trends around it shift. Necklace
Let’s start with the biggest myth we’ve all bought into: that the heart shape originated from the human heart itself. For years, I assumed that’s where it came from, too—until I dug into the history when a customer asked for a “medieval-style heart necklace” for their anniversary a few years back. Turns out, the human heart wasn’t associated with the curved symbol we know until around the 13th century, when European monks and scholars started writing about the “soul seat of the heart,” a concept that linked the physical organ to emotion, memory, and faith. Before that, the heart shape had much older, less literal meanings. The ancient Greeks carved heart-shaped symbols into clay pots to represent silphium, a now-extinct plant that grew along the Mediterranean coast and was used as both a seasoning and an early form of contraception. For them, the heart shape wasn’t about romance or anatomy—it was about abundance, fertility, and the delicate balance of life and protection. The Etruscans, who lived in what’s now central Italy around the same time, used the shape to symbolize the heart as the center of the soul, tying it to their rituals of honoring the dead and guiding loved ones to the afterlife. That’s the part that stuck with me, because it’s the first time I realized the heart shape isn’t just for romantic love—it’s a marker of connection in all its forms, and that’s a theme we carry in every necklace we source.
By the 15th century, the heart shape had shifted to become the ultimate symbol of romantic love, thanks in part to medieval courtly love traditions. Knights would exchange heart-shaped tokens with their ladies as promises of devotion, and painters started using the shape to depict the hearts of saints and lovers in religious art. But here’s what’s interesting: even then, the heart shape wasn’t a one-note symbol. In the Renaissance, for example, jewelers would add tiny details to their heart necklaces—like a tiny rose cut diamond, a carved flower, or a fleur-de-lis—to layer meaning. A heart with a rose, for instance, might represent pure, enduring love, while one with a key could symbolize “the key to my heart.” That custom still informs how we curate our collections today. When we’re selecting heart-shaped necklaces to offer our clients, we don’t just pick the most symmetrical, shiny pieces—we look for details that let the wearer add their own story. A heart necklace with a tiny birthstone, for example, can become a tribute to a child or a best friend, while a minimalist silver heart might feel like a quiet promise to oneself, not a partner.
Which brings me to a point I’ve noticed over years of working with retailers and direct customers alike: the heart shape’s biggest strength is its flexibility. It’s not locked into “romance” the way so many other love symbols are. Last year, we had a customer who bought three identical small gold heart necklaces: one for her mother, one for her sister, and one for her daughter, as a “chain of care” necklace she called it. That’s not the kind of use we would have predicted when we first added that design to our line, but it’s exactly what makes heart-shaped necklaces such steady sellers—because people adapt them to their own lives. We’ve also seen them worn by people who aren’t in romantic relationships at all: a college student who got one to celebrate graduating and being kind to herself, a man who wears a small leather-bound heart every day in honor of his late grandfather, a group of friends who matched heart necklaces after going through a tough year together. For a long time, I thought our heart necklaces were just “gift items” for Valentine’s Day or anniversaries, but now I know they’re markers of milestone moments, both big and small. A first job. A cancer remission. The day you move across the country to start a new life. The heart shape fits all of that, because it’s not about one specific emotion—it’s about love as a whole, in all its forms.
Of course, there’s a darker side to this symbolism, too, that’s important to talk about, especially now. The heart shape has been commodified so heavily in consumer culture that it’s sometimes seen as cheesy, or too “basic”—something only for teenagers or Valentine’s Day cards, not for adults. I’ve heard retailers say they shy away from heart necklaces because they “don’t sell” outside of February, and I get it—when you see mass-produced plastic heart necklaces at gas stations, or over-the-top diamond heart pendants marketed as the “ultimate romantic gift,” it’s easy to write the symbol off as overdone. But that’s the thing about symbolism: it only feels tired if you forget that it’s personal. The mass-produced, generic heart necklace someone bought on a lark doesn’t have to be the same as the heart necklace you wear every day, that was a gift from your best friend, or that you bought for yourself as a reminder to be gentle. We push back against that commodification in our supply chain, too—working with artisans who make our heart necklaces with ethically sourced metals, not the cheap materials that erode the symbol’s meaning. We’ve started offering customization options, too, so someone can engrave a date, a nickname, or a tiny phrase on the back of their heart pendant, turning a mass-produced symbol into something unique and theirs.
Another layer of symbolism I’ve come to appreciate in recent years is the idea of the “open heart” versus the “closed heart.” Most heart necklaces have a rounded top, but some have a small gap at the center, or a cutout in the shape of a star or a heart on the back. We started carrying more of these a few years ago, and they quickly became fan favorites. The open heart, to me, symbolizes vulnerability—something that’s easy to forget in a world that encourages us to keep our walls up. Wearing an open heart necklace isn’t a sign that you’re weak; it’s a sign that you’re open to love, to connection, to taking risks. The closed heart, meanwhile, can be a symbol of self-love—of protecting your own peace, of setting boundaries without closing yourself off entirely. I saw a powerful example of this during the pandemic, when so many of us were isolated. Customers started buying more closed heart necklaces after losing touch with loved ones, using them as a reminder that even when you’re apart, you can still hold onto your connection to yourself, and to the people you care about. That’s the kind of symbolism that makes a necklace more than just an accessory—it becomes a talisman, a small, wearable reminder of what matters.
As a necklace supplier, I’ve also thought a lot about why heart-shaped necklaces remain popular when new designs and symbols pop up every season. The heart shape is simple, recognizable, and universal. It doesn’t require an explanation, like a specific constellation or a tribal symbol might—anyone, anywhere, can look at a heart necklace and immediately feel something, even if they don’t know the full history of its symbolism. That’s a rare quality in jewelry, which often ties itself to specific cultures, trends, or eras. The heart shape is for everyone. It’s been around for thousands of years, and it will be around for thousands more, because it speaks to a core human experience: the need to love, to be loved, to be connected.
Fashion Jewelry I’ve spent my entire career working with jewelry because I believe that the pieces we wear tell our stories. A heart-shaped necklace isn’t just a piece of metal or stone strung on a chain. It’s a tribute to a parent, a promise to a friend, a reminder to be kind to yourself, a token of love that outlasts the moment it was given. Whether you’re a retailer looking to add meaningful pieces to your collection, or an individual looking for a necklace that feels like you, the symbolism of the heart shape is there to be shaped, interpreted, and made your own. If you’re curious about our curated line of heart-shaped necklaces, from minimalist everyday pieces to customizable, artisan-made designs, feel free to reach out to discuss how we can work together. The best part of being in this business is helping people find pieces that matter—and that starts with understanding why symbols like the heart necklace have such a hold on all of us.
References
- Stokstad, M., & Cothren, M. W. (2018). Art History (6th ed.). Pearson.
- Pattison, E. (2018). The Secret History of the Heart Symbol. Bloomsbury Sigma.
- Graf, D., et al. (2020). "Cultural Symbolism of the Heart: From Ancient Rituals to Modern Talisman." Journal of Material Culture and Identity, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 297-314.
- Treasures of the Etruscans (2021). Metropolitan Museum of Art.
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