The source where the ring may not have any precious stones on it TB Kiddushin 7-8

Rabba and Rav Yosef’s disagreement on dappim TB Kiddushin 7-8 has practical ramifications today.

“There was a certain man who betrothed a woman with silk [beshira’ei] garments. Rabba said: An appraisal of the value of the garments is not necessary, as they are certainly worth more than one peruta. Rav Yosef said: An appraisal of the value of the garments is necessary, and as the man did not determine the value of the silk garments before the betrothal, the betrothal is invalid. The Gemara comments: If he said to her that she should become betrothed to him by any amount, regardless of the value of the silk garments, everyone agrees that the garments do not require appraisal, as they are undoubtedly worth more than one peruta.

“Conversely, if he said to her that they are worth fifty dinars, and they are not worth fifty dinars, then everyone agrees that the betrothal is not valid, as they are not worth the amount he specified. They disagree when he said that they are worth fifty dinars, and in actuality they are worth fifty dinars. Rabba said: An appraisal of the value of the garments is not necessary before the betrothal, as they are worth fifty dinars. Rav Yosef said: An appraisal of the value of the garments is necessary, because the woman herself is not an expert in appraisal and she does not rely on his assessment. Since she is unsure if the garments are actually worth fifty dinars as he claimed, she does not agree to be betrothed.” (Sefaria.org translation)

The woman accepting the gift on the condition of kiddushin has to know the value of the gift. Because the woman is not expert appraiser, she might draw the wrong conclusions about her future husband. Based on her mistaken appraisal of the gift, she might think that her husband is richer than he actually is. When she finds out that he’s not as rich as she supposed, would she still have accepted the garment for the purpose of kiddushin? The whole marriage would be placed in doubt.

In the Tosefot TB Kiddushin 9a ד"ה והלכתא שיראי לא צריך שומא Rebbeinu Tam writes that women have a basic understanding of a garments worth; consequently, they know what they’re getting into and are betrothed. However when it comes to precious stones, the average person has no clue whether the stones are fake or real and if they are real how much are they really worth. Therefore there is a custom in Israel that the ring given to the bride for the purpose of kiddushin underneath the khupah may not have any precious stones on it. The ring needs to be a gold or silver ring whose value is easily understood. This is the custom in Israel to this very day.