Ancient Rings

Ancient finger rings made of base metals and low-grade silver alloys are increasingly being unearthed and sold through a growing assortment of marketplaces worldwide. Reference material on ancient rings has focused mainly on historic and “high-end” pieces—the precious metals and stones of royalty and the wealthy—while little has been written on the evaluation of common rings. This guide describes their composition, structure and imagery, thus providing merchants, collectors and researchers with a comprehensive reference on these ancient artifacts that, until now, have gone unexamined.

T.N. Pollio is a researcher and historian who lives in East Haven, Connecticut.

T.N. Pollio

Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 180
Bibliographic Info: 473 photos, glossary, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2018
pISBN: 978-1-4766-7385-1
eISBN: 978-1-4766-3268-1
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments v
Preface 1
Introduction 2
Avenues for Exploration  2

Part I: The Basics 5
A Brief History of Ring Collecting  5
Terminology  7
Materials Used  8
Decorative Additions  8

Part II: Important Issues 9
Ring Types  9
Availability  10
Difficulties in Identification and Dating  10
The Identification Process  12
The Dating Process  14
Ethical Issues  14
The Proliferation of Fake Antiquities  15

Part III: Historical Periods and Styles 17
Dating Conventions  17
Neolithic Period  18
Copper Age  18
Bronze Age  18
Iron Age  19
Judaism  19
Classical Antiquity  20
Medieval Period  21
Islam  23
Byzantium  23
The Renaissance  24
The Modern Period/Industrial Age  25

Part IV: Universal Symbols 26
The Recurrence of Common Symbols  26
Additional Ancient Symbols: The Vinca Pictograms  44

Part V: Ring Types by Period 45
Bronze and Iron Ages  45
Persian Empire  53
Greco-Roman Antiquity  55
Greek Rings  56
Roman Rings  58
Byzantine Period  85
Medieval and Renaissance Periods  90
Viking-Era and Later Baltic Designs  132
The Modern Period/Industrial Age  136

Part VI: Cleaning and Conservation 142
Silver Rings  142
Copper, Bronze and Brass Rings  142

Epilogue 145
Glossary 147
Notes 161
Bibliography 166
Index 169

• “Profusely illustrated and impressively informative…a definitive and comprehensive reference on these ancient artifacts…. Exceptionally well organized and presented.”—Midwest Book Review
• “The writing is concise, knowledgeable, and very informative”—ARBA.