Ring
1820-1850 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
One of the specialities of the Schwäbisch Gmünd silversmiths was the production of rings set with glass bezels which had gold designs painted or applied to their backs which were then covered with coloured lacquer or foil. These appear from the front as gold motifs on a red ground. Although some had sentimental subjects, such as hearts and flowers, the majority, as in this example, showed the Christian monogram IHS, standing for the first three letters of the name ‘Jesus’ in Greek.
The construction of this ring shows the extreme efficiency of the Gmünd manufacturing process. The central enamel appears to be surrounded by a band of filigree coil rings but these are an imitation, separately stamped from thin sheet metal and fastened to the ring by a triangular tab at the top and bottom.
The construction of this ring shows the extreme efficiency of the Gmünd manufacturing process. The central enamel appears to be surrounded by a band of filigree coil rings but these are an imitation, separately stamped from thin sheet metal and fastened to the ring by a triangular tab at the top and bottom.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Silver set with red and green pastes and a monogram reverse-painted in gold over red foil under glass |
| Brief description | Silver ring with a reverse-painted red and gold 'IHS' surrounded by imitation filigree and red and green pastes, Schwäbisch Gmünd (Germany), 1820-1850. |
| Physical description | Silver ring with flat shank, decorated with diagonal bands of dots, ending in split shoulders. The bezel is a square piece of glass with rounded corners decorated with the letters ‘IHS’, with a cross in the centre, reverse-painted in gold over red foil, and surrounded by a gilded border stamped to imitate filigree coil rings. There is a pierced spray over the split on each shoulder set with three pastes on each side, two red and one green. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Summary | One of the specialities of the Schwäbisch Gmünd silversmiths was the production of rings set with glass bezels which had gold designs painted or applied to their backs which were then covered with coloured lacquer or foil. These appear from the front as gold motifs on a red ground. Although some had sentimental subjects, such as hearts and flowers, the majority, as in this example, showed the Christian monogram IHS, standing for the first three letters of the name ‘Jesus’ in Greek. The construction of this ring shows the extreme efficiency of the Gmünd manufacturing process. The central enamel appears to be surrounded by a band of filigree coil rings but these are an imitation, separately stamped from thin sheet metal and fastened to the ring by a triangular tab at the top and bottom. |
| Bibliographic reference | For similar, see:
Röhrs, Ursula. 'Der Ring. 500 Jahre Schmuck, Magie, Handwerk und Design', Schwäbisch Gmüund, 2011, fig. 115 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 904-1872 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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