Unknown Pure silver heavy ring

[SiNpro88]

For some reason this ring is my favorite out of everything I have only because I've never been able to find out anything about it. It's very heavy for a ring and I do know it's pure silver. There's markings all over this thing as you can see and it seems very old and possibly hand made but I'm still a novice so I could be wrong. The front of it seems like some kind of family crest or something but I'm unsure no one I've ever showed it too has any clue as to what it is. Any Info would be great.

 

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[sprailroad]

It does look "Hand made". Has it tested as silver? or could it be lead?

 

[SiNpro88]

Yes, I had it tested a few years back at a local pawn shop. Don't remember exactly how much it weighed but it was relatively heavy for a ring and they just wanted to melt it down for the silver I said noooooooooo I wanted to know how old it is and no one knows.

 

[islamoradamark]

looks like alot of time went into building that ring hey that could have belonged to a secret society looks old

 

[tamrock]

It does have a coat of arms or some kind of crest. Looks like two stags upright on each side of a shield. That seems to be a typical type coat of arms to me? Did you uncover this in the field? I don't know for sure, but I believe it was made by a lost wax casting. It does appear to have a cross on the shield?

 

[Reanm8er]

It looks like a crest badge ring and is probably inverse for sealing documents. Most crest badge stuff pre-dates the revolution, Do you have any idea where it came from, location wise? Sometimes, if you can trace an artifact back to a particular area you can check the index of historic homes and places and come up with a family name. If you can pick out individual details of the crest and create a description you might be able to identify. At the advent of the revolution many English families closed their homes and left for safer ground. As the war intensified colonial looters often pilfered the homes and the goods were scattered to the winds.
In my case my dad found these crest badges on an old horse collar at an auction.

I researched them to find out who and where the owners were, because many of the colonial English in my area were landed families in England all of whom had crests. So, I set out to see where their plantation was. I wound up contacting a jeweler in England that still makes crest jewelry and he identified the family as "Barrow". To my astonishment I've been living on the place since 1978.

 

[Blak bart]

Glad it didnt get melted.........nice piece of history you have there. Congratulations !!

 

[Rookster]

That's a nice one.Congrats.

 

[SiNpro88]

I found it in my grandmother's shed while cleaning it out years ago. She's getting old and unfortunately has no memory of where it came from.

 

[A2coins]

that is reaaly sweet and old

 

[gunsil]

It is not handmade, it was cast. Pure silver is .999 silver, did you mean solid sterling?

 

[diggummup]

Looks like an old worn ring. Being pure silver would explain the excessive wear.

"Fine silver" is considered pure. They make rings and other items besides bullion with .999. I believe their is a silver clay that also reduces to fine silver. I've had a few pieces marked fine silver over the years.

 

[SiNpro88]

I just meant the entire thing was tested to be silver I'm far from knowing different types.

 

[Reanm8er]

I agree with gunsil, An engraving burin is a very sharp pointed tool and tends to leave very narrow tracks at the bottom of the lands. The carving here was done in the wax model which can be worked with something as soft as a toothpick. I enlarged it and goosed up the contrast so I could see the engraving work better.

View attachment 1628849 It definitely doesn't look like hand engraved metal. Here is an example of wax carving. View attachment 1628850 And the finished product. View attachment 1628852 Note how the wax has a pebbly surface in some spots.
This from moving and shaping the wax model with a hot needle. You can also add shapes and charcters by getting droplets of wax on the hot needle and pasting them on the model. You can then drag strings of the wax around on the model to
create shapes. I believe your ring was made this way. It is by no means a new process in fact the ancient Egyptian's did it millennia ago.

 

[b3y0nd3r]

I feel this ring was in a fire of some sort.

 

[Tpmetal]

I agree with gunsil, An engraving burin is a very sharp pointed tool and tends to leave very narrow tracks at the bottom of the lands. The carving here was done in the wax model which can be worked with something as soft as a toothpick. I enlarged it and goosed up the contrast so I could see the engraving work better.

View attachment 1628849 It definitely doesn't look like hand engraved metal. Here is an example of wax carving. View attachment 1628850 And the finished product. View attachment 1628852 Note how the wax has a pebbly surface in some spots.
This from moving and shaping the wax model with a hot needle. You can also add shapes and charcters by getting droplets of wax on the hot needle and pasting them on the model. You can then drag strings of the wax around on the model to
create shapes. I believe your ring was made this way. It is by no means a new process in fact the ancient Egyptian's did it millennia ago.

100 PERCENT ON POINT!

 

[huntsman53]

Congrats on the Silver ring find! I could be wrong but it has a Central European appearance to the crest with Deer. I would lean towards Germany, Austria, other nearby countries and even Switzerland as these areas were and are still known for the well known organized Deer hunts.

 

[A2coins]

thats a beauty

 

[SiNpro88]

Thanks everyone

 

[SiNpro88]

And why would you say it was in a fire?