Rings are at once the most intimate forms of jewelry and personal forms of art. This book focuses on approximately fifty rings from a distinguished private collection, tracing the ways that rings of the Middle Ages and Renaissance came to be meaningful. From the mine to the modern collection and through the forge, the goldsmith's shop, and the hands of successive generations of owners, these rings underwent journeys that lent them multifaceted and often multilayered resonances. This book explores these pathways and examines how people throughout history have interacted with multiple aspects of these small but remarkably complex objects. An introduction by Diana Scarisbrick supplements this biography of rings by investigating five prominent ring enthusiasts whose lives, interests, and collections have played prominent roles in the development of the modern appraisal of rings, while providing a chronological sequence for the rings in this book. A catalog of the rings, including their technical details, accompanies the text.
