Iron Ring -- Need Help to Identify

[Advocat]

My Dad passed away a couple of years ago. This weekend, we family members were sorting through remainder of his personal items, and came across an unusual ring. It's made of iron, and it was in a box with some other rings that looked as though they belonged to Dad when he was still a kid as those were pretty small-sized rings. The iron ring is a size 12. I can wear it on my thumb or first finger, and although it is a bit loose it is not so bulky as to be uncomfortable.

The ring surfaces are smooth. The "top" is a rectangle that stand up on the ring as the main feature. The rectangle has cross-hatching and the number "5" in the middle. The cross-hatching design is also on the "shoulders" of the ring below the rectangular top. The upper part of the ring, including the rectangular top, almost appear to have been carved because there are minor irregularities in shape when one area is matched to the same area on the other side of the ring. Also, the cross-hatched design is not of uniform spacing so does not appear to have been stamped on the metal, more like it was incised in some way.

Pictures attached. If this was a finger ring, I don't understand the significance of the numeral "5" on it. If it was not a finger ring, I can't figure out what it could have been. There's no wear pattern that would give any clues. It can't have been used as a stamp because the number 5 would be reversed on a stamped image made by it.

My Dad was born 1922, and his father was an amateur archaeologist ... I have wondered if this ring could be an archaeological find, but wouldn't the number 5 be pretty recent?

Any ideas?

 

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[unclemac]

one thing it is not is a ring for a finger.

 

[unclemac]

i take that back...lookie here...

Other antique finger rings on Pinterest

 

[Tnmountains]

Interesting UncleMatt as what it says under the similar ring you found " Schlag (defensive) ring. Austria, Tyrol. 19th century. . This ring was owned by I Holl or Holz, a peasant who used it to kill an adversary. A law was subsequently passed forbidding their use."

So it could possibly be a type of Archeological find ?

 

[Advocat]

Thanks Unclemac -- that's the closest thing I've seen to the one I have. When I look up "schlag ring" or "schlagring" on Google Images, I come up with pictures of brass knuckles, basically. And there appear to be quite a few references on the web, but I don't read German ....

If this is indeed a schlag ring, I wonder where it came from. My Grandfather served in the Army in WWI, but he was a doctor at Ft. Dix, so he only served State-side. Dad served in WWII, in the Army Air Corps in the South Pacific (not in the European Theatre).

And I wonder if the number "5" represents notches in the maker's...er... belt, so to speak.

 

[unclemac]

i am not convinced it is finger ring, but it is interesting....keep this thread alive and someone will ID it

 

[Advocat]

i am not convinced it is finger ring, but it is interesting....keep this thread alive and someone will ID it

You may be right that it is not a finger ring, but I can wear it on my index finger with no discomfort -- i.e., it's not too bulky or heavy and could be worn all day.

 

[vhs07]

I wonder if the cross hatching is just for design or for a "grip" like you'd see on a gun hammer? Just a WAG. Maybe a sizing gauge?

 

[GatorBoy]

How does it fit if you flip it around and face the cross hatching into the palm of your hand when making a fist? It reminds me of brass knuckles

 

[GatorBoy]

 

[TheCoinKid]

Looks to be some sort of sizer. The 5 representing the size,

Me thinks vhs07 go it right.

Now, a sizer for what?

TCK

 

[Advocat]

How does it fit if you flip it around and face the cross hatching into the palm of your hand when making a fist? It reminds me of brass knuckles

Still fits pretty comfortably -- it doesn't "project" out from the finger/hand as much as the picture you used.

 

[GatorBoy]

It was just a thought that crossed my mind so I googled images saw several of them similar to yours I just took that photo because it illustrated my thought.. That still leaves the number 5 without explanation.. I'm not sure exactly what it is but if it was for sizing something I would imagine there would be more of a handle on it for holding onto... a little cross hatch on the the end of that section wouldn't be very much for a purposely made handle.. That explanation doesn't seem to work for me.
The fact it was with other rings made for the hand says something

 

[unclemac]

so what if the cross hatching was for a thumb?...somehow what the thing came off of is "operated" by a thumb....

 

[GatorBoy]

Then wouldn't there be grip on the sides including the end not only the end?.. Unless you're just pushing it like a button I don't think so

 

[Ant]

I reminds me of a die/jaw that go in a crimper or another kind of pinching tool.

 

[unclemac]

Then wouldn't there be grip on the sides including the end not only the end?.. Unless you're just pushing it like a button I don't think so

i think it is a part from a something, not just a something. the profile seems wrong for a finger ring (all round and such) and that "5" is wrong for a decoration...i feel it means some sort of size or function. I found lots of bronze rings that were cross hatched but they didn't really match.

 

[Advocat]

For some further description .... there is also some cross-hatching on both "shoulders" of this piece, just below where it curves in and then out to form the rectangular "top". Then, on the outside of the rest of the curve, there are slanted lines -- not cross-hatching, just lines slanted slightly in the same direction -- all the way around the outside.

The cross-hatching and the lines seem to me like decoration, because I can't think of any functional reason for them to be on the piece.

 

[Old Dude]

Because of the irregular spacing of the crosshatch, what are the possibilities of it being trench art? Your father could have been given it in appreciation of an act of kindness....who knows? Nice little mysterious find.

 

[diggummup]

Because of the irregular spacing of the crosshatch, what are the possibilities of it being trench art? Your father could have been given it in appreciation of an act of kindness....who knows? Nice little mysterious find.

That was my first guess on the other thread. Maybe a part from a weapon or bayonet.
http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/garage-sale-finds/436072-iron-ring-need-help-identify.html The cross hatching looks likes it was done by hand.