Ring
1500-1600 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
A seal or signet ring was used to apply the wearer's personal mark to the sealing wax on a document. The seal then demonstrated the legality of the document and the identification of the issuing authority or individual. Signet rings could be engraved with a coat of arms or crest, an initial, a merchant's mark (a geometric symbol used to mark goods or personal belongings), or a personal symbol. Sixteenth and seventeenth century portraits show signet rings worn on the forefinger or thumb, presumably to make it easy to apply the ring to the wax by turning the hand. They were items of jewellery with a practical function but the use of precious metals and engraved hardstones indicates that they were also signs of status.
The mark on the bezel is a merchant's mark, used to mark goods and as a signet for those not entitled to a coat of arms. Most merchants in the sixteenth and seventeenth century had marks, easily identifiable and formed with a few strokes of the brush. In England, most marks were like mastheads, designed around an inverted V, a double X or W, a reversed 4 or a combination of these elements. Many merchants rings also bear religious or talismanic inscriptions, combining a spiritual with a commercial function.
The mark on the bezel is a merchant's mark, used to mark goods and as a signet for those not entitled to a coat of arms. Most merchants in the sixteenth and seventeenth century had marks, easily identifiable and formed with a few strokes of the brush. In England, most marks were like mastheads, designed around an inverted V, a double X or W, a reversed 4 or a combination of these elements. Many merchants rings also bear religious or talismanic inscriptions, combining a spiritual with a commercial function.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Engraved gold |
Brief description | Gold ring, the oval bezel engraved with a merchant's mark of a double barred cross between G and S, England, 1500-1600. |
Physical description | Gold ring, the oval bezel engraved with a merchant's mark of a double barred cross between G and S |
Dimensions |
|
Marks and inscriptions | Double barred cross between G and S (Merchant's mark, engraved) |
Credit line | Given by Dame Joan Evans |
Subject depicted | |
Association | |
Summary | A seal or signet ring was used to apply the wearer's personal mark to the sealing wax on a document. The seal then demonstrated the legality of the document and the identification of the issuing authority or individual. Signet rings could be engraved with a coat of arms or crest, an initial, a merchant's mark (a geometric symbol used to mark goods or personal belongings), or a personal symbol. Sixteenth and seventeenth century portraits show signet rings worn on the forefinger or thumb, presumably to make it easy to apply the ring to the wax by turning the hand. They were items of jewellery with a practical function but the use of precious metals and engraved hardstones indicates that they were also signs of status. The mark on the bezel is a merchant's mark, used to mark goods and as a signet for those not entitled to a coat of arms. Most merchants in the sixteenth and seventeenth century had marks, easily identifiable and formed with a few strokes of the brush. In England, most marks were like mastheads, designed around an inverted V, a double X or W, a reversed 4 or a combination of these elements. Many merchants rings also bear religious or talismanic inscriptions, combining a spiritual with a commercial function. |
Collection | |
Accession number | M.223-1975 |
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Record created | November 23, 2005 |
Record URL |
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