Ring
15th century (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Rings have been given as signs of love and marriage since Greek and Roman times. This silver ring has been engraved and decorated with niello, a shiny black paste which is pressed into the engraved pattern and polished smooth. The bezel of this ring is nielloed with the profile head of a young woman. Although this might have been intended as a portrait of a particular woman, it is more likely to be an idealised beauty. It may have served a similar purpose to the maiolica dishes known as 'belle donne' or 'beautiful women', where idealised female portraits are associated with romantic verses or the names of local women and are thought to have been gifts, possibly as part of betrothal or wedding ceremonies. The back of the hoop is formed as a pair of clasped hands, a romantic symbol which was associated with marriage.
This ring forms part of a collection of over 600 rings and engraved gems from the collection of Edmund Waterton (1830-81). Waterton was one of the foremost ring collectors of the nineteenth century and was the author of several articles on rings, a book on English devotion to the Virgin Mary and an unfinished catalogue of his collection (the manuscript is now the National Art Library). Waterton was noted for his extravagance and financial troubles caused him to place his collection in pawn with the London jeweller Robert Phillips. When he was unable to repay the loan, Phillips offered to sell the collection to the Museum and it was acquired in 1871. A small group of rings which Waterton had held back were acquired in 1899.
Edmund Waterton used the fortune which was made by his family’s involvement in the British Guiana sugar plantations to put his collection together. His grandfather owned a plantation known as Walton Hall and his father, Charles Waterton, went to Guiana as a young man to help run La Jalousie and Fellowship, plantations which belonged to his uncles. When slavery was abolished in the British territories, Charles Waterton claimed £16283 6s 7d in government compensation and was recorded as having 300 slaves on the Walton Hall estate.
This ring forms part of a collection of over 600 rings and engraved gems from the collection of Edmund Waterton (1830-81). Waterton was one of the foremost ring collectors of the nineteenth century and was the author of several articles on rings, a book on English devotion to the Virgin Mary and an unfinished catalogue of his collection (the manuscript is now the National Art Library). Waterton was noted for his extravagance and financial troubles caused him to place his collection in pawn with the London jeweller Robert Phillips. When he was unable to repay the loan, Phillips offered to sell the collection to the Museum and it was acquired in 1871. A small group of rings which Waterton had held back were acquired in 1899.
Edmund Waterton used the fortune which was made by his family’s involvement in the British Guiana sugar plantations to put his collection together. His grandfather owned a plantation known as Walton Hall and his father, Charles Waterton, went to Guiana as a young man to help run La Jalousie and Fellowship, plantations which belonged to his uncles. When slavery was abolished in the British territories, Charles Waterton claimed £16283 6s 7d in government compensation and was recorded as having 300 slaves on the Walton Hall estate.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Nielloed silver |
Brief description | Nielloed silver ring, with two bezels, one a fede and the other circular, with a female bust and a rose. The shoulders are decorated with rosettes, North Italy, 15th century |
Physical description | Nielloed silver ring, with two bezels, one a fede and the other circular, with a female bust and a rose. The shoulders are decorated with rosettes |
Dimensions |
|
Object history | ex Waterton Collection |
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | Rings have been given as signs of love and marriage since Greek and Roman times. This silver ring has been engraved and decorated with niello, a shiny black paste which is pressed into the engraved pattern and polished smooth. The bezel of this ring is nielloed with the profile head of a young woman. Although this might have been intended as a portrait of a particular woman, it is more likely to be an idealised beauty. It may have served a similar purpose to the maiolica dishes known as 'belle donne' or 'beautiful women', where idealised female portraits are associated with romantic verses or the names of local women and are thought to have been gifts, possibly as part of betrothal or wedding ceremonies. The back of the hoop is formed as a pair of clasped hands, a romantic symbol which was associated with marriage. This ring forms part of a collection of over 600 rings and engraved gems from the collection of Edmund Waterton (1830-81). Waterton was one of the foremost ring collectors of the nineteenth century and was the author of several articles on rings, a book on English devotion to the Virgin Mary and an unfinished catalogue of his collection (the manuscript is now the National Art Library). Waterton was noted for his extravagance and financial troubles caused him to place his collection in pawn with the London jeweller Robert Phillips. When he was unable to repay the loan, Phillips offered to sell the collection to the Museum and it was acquired in 1871. A small group of rings which Waterton had held back were acquired in 1899. Edmund Waterton used the fortune which was made by his family’s involvement in the British Guiana sugar plantations to put his collection together. His grandfather owned a plantation known as Walton Hall and his father, Charles Waterton, went to Guiana as a young man to help run La Jalousie and Fellowship, plantations which belonged to his uncles. When slavery was abolished in the British territories, Charles Waterton claimed £16283 6s 7d in government compensation and was recorded as having 300 slaves on the Walton Hall estate. |
Bibliographic references |
|
Collection | |
Accession number | 873-1871 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
Record created | February 16, 2006 |
Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest