Medieval Gold Gem Set Finger Ring. Circa 14th century CE. 2....

Hammer

£1,420

Medieval Gold Gem Set Finger Ring. Circa 14th century CE. 2.90g. 25 mm, 19 mm internal. UK ring size, O. US size 7. Formed of a plain slender band and a deep oval bezel set with a dark red cabachon garnet. Ref: C.C. Oman. Catalogue of Rings 1930. p.67. no.256. Recorded on the PAS database: DEV-2BE4FC. This class of rings are part of a phenomenon of increased interest in gemstones and gem set finger rings visible in the high medieval period (Hinton 2005, 187), with attention paid to the meaning of gemstones or their supposed properties as recorded in lapidaries. Garnet is ascribed a variety of possible powers, both medical, such as the ability to improve circulation, and emotional, such as the ability to protect the wearer from melancholy and strengthen their will (See Adams 1995, Ogden 2021 for assessments of medieval gems and their medical and social roles). Garnets also supposedly had a role in protection against plague, apt for a 14th-century date.