My Heart Within Your Hands

Vintage Gold Gimmel Ring, 2nd Half of the 20th Century

€ 1,190.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

Vintage Gold Gimmel Ring, 2nd Half of the 20th Century

Description

This description was automatically translated from German. If you have any questions about this piece of jewellery, we will be happy to help!

This 14-karat gold ring shows two interlocking hands that form the ancient motif of the oath of allegiance. The ring consists of three parts connected by a pin. They can be moved against each other to open the hands. Here they reveal a small heart that is securely held by them. The ring can only be worn when the hands are clasped together. Like so many refinements in fashion and taste, the idea for this particular ring originated in France. It is a type that is called a gimmel ring in Great Britain (from the Latin "gemellus", meaning twin) and we first encounter it in Paris in 1211. In fact, it is recorded that Henry III of England acquired such a ring there and gave it to Count de Gysnes as a gift. In the centuries that followed, gimmel rings were often given as a sign of friendship or love; their symbolism of matching halves appealed to people in France as much as in Great Britain or Germany. There were highly ornate examples with precious diamond or enamel details as well as simpler, more everyday rings that were worn as wedding rings. The Victoria & Albert Museum has some beautiful examples in its collection. This vintage ring follows this ancient jewellery genre and may have once been created as a wedding ring. It meticulously follows historical models, but was only made in the second half of the last century. The ring came to us from Austria and is a touching piece of jewellery history. On the Gimmel ring, see Diana Scarisbrick: Rings. Jewelry of Power, Love and Loyalty, London 2007, pp. 71f., 100ff. and others, for examples from Germany also Anna Beatriz Chadour / Rüdiger Joppien: Schmuck II. Finger Rings (= Catalogs of the Cologne Museum of Decorative Arts, vol. 10), Cologne 1985, p. 194f.

Size & Details

My Heart Within Your Hands

€ 1,190.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

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My Heart Within Your Hands

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