The Journal
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Intaglio Rings and Jewellery: A Collector's Guide
What is an intaglio, how is it different from a cameo, and how can an ancient Roman stone end up in a 19th-century ring? Everything you need to know before...
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Snake Rings: 2,000 Years of the Serpent in Jewellery
From Roman Pompeii to Queen Victoria's engagement ring, the history and meaning of the antique snake ring, and what to look for when buying one.
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Antique Signet Rings: A Buyer's Guide from Roman Seals to Victorian Crests
How to tell the age of an antique signet ring, what the stones and crests mean, and how to choose one to wear every day, from a dealer who handles...
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Saints on the Hand: A 15th-Century English Iconographic Ring
St Christopher, the Madonna and Child and St Barbara, engraved on a silver-gilt ring worn in England around 1400 to 1500. What medieval iconographic rings meant to the people who...
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Two Locks of Hair: The Vernon Family Memorial Locket
A plain gold locket opens to reveal the names of Lord and Lady Vernon of Sudbury Hall and two locks of their hair. The story of a rare piece of...
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A Temple for the Finger: The Siamese Mondop Ceremonial Ring
Built like the tiered roof of a Bangkok temple, the mondop ring was made for the court of Siam. We take a close look at a rare late 18th to...
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I Gave Gold for Iron: The Story of Our Berlin Iron Signet Ring
In 1813 Prussians handed over their gold to fight Napoleon and received jewellery cast in iron in return. A rare c.1820 Berlin iron signet ring tells the story.
