Ring
ca. 1810-1820 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
This ring is set with a fashionable combination of diamonds, tiny emeralds, pearls and half pearls. Pearls symbolised purity but were also appreciated for their shine and aesthetic qualities.
The development of cultured pearls in Japan by Kokichi Mikimoto in the early twentieth century made pearls suddenly accessible but before that date, the largest and most lustrous pearls were valued as highly as gemstones. Smaller pearls were more readily available, traded from Ceylon and India and, from the 1820s, from the Arabian Gulf.
The development of cultured pearls in Japan by Kokichi Mikimoto in the early twentieth century made pearls suddenly accessible but before that date, the largest and most lustrous pearls were valued as highly as gemstones. Smaller pearls were more readily available, traded from Ceylon and India and, from the 1820s, from the Arabian Gulf.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Gold with brilliant-cut diamond, half pearls and emeralds |
Brief description | Gold ring set with a brilliant-cut diamond, emeralds, pearls and half pearls. England, about 1810-20. |
Physical description | Gold ring with a quatrefoil bezel set with a brilliant-cut diamond and half pearls. The forked shoulders set with emeralds and half pearls. |
Dimensions |
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Credit line | Given by Dame Joan Evans |
Subject depicted | |
Summary | This ring is set with a fashionable combination of diamonds, tiny emeralds, pearls and half pearls. Pearls symbolised purity but were also appreciated for their shine and aesthetic qualities. The development of cultured pearls in Japan by Kokichi Mikimoto in the early twentieth century made pearls suddenly accessible but before that date, the largest and most lustrous pearls were valued as highly as gemstones. Smaller pearls were more readily available, traded from Ceylon and India and, from the 1820s, from the Arabian Gulf. |
Collection | |
Accession number | M.217-1962 |
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Record created | November 7, 2005 |
Record URL |
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