The handshake was practiced in ancient Greece a far back as the fifth century BC; a depiction of two soldiers shaking hands can be found on part of a funerary stone on display at Pergamon Museum, Berlin. The handshake is thought to have originated as a gesture of peace by demonstrating that the hand holds no weapon.
There are various customs surrounding handshakes, both generically and specific to certain cultures:
The handshake is commonly done upon meeting, greeting, parting, offering congratulations, expressing gratitude, or completing an agreement. In sports or other competitive activities, it is also done as a sign of good sportsmanship. Its purpose is to convey trust, respect, balance, and equality. If it is done to form an agreement, the agreement is not official until the hands are parted.
Unless health issues or local customs dictate otherwise, a handshake is made usually with bare hands. However, it depends on the situation.
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