Found this in Germany

[jolin376200]

I found this ring on a hillside in the mountains of Garmisch Germany on a hillside. I am guessing that it is a Monk Ring the ring is made of silver and looks hand made the sides are worn so I am guessing that it was worn for many many years. My guess is that remembering the place I found it a Monk had sat down on a hillside took off the ring or it fell out of his robe and was lost forever. There are many Monastery's in the near by area. Does anyone know anything about this ring or can you give me any information about it. This is by far my best find it's one of those things that is probably not worth much but is also priceless any help would be great.


Thanks

jolin376200

 

[Joel-Winnipeg]

Very interesting find. Congrats ! Unique ring !
Can't help you with the history of it but your version could be the right one.

 

[ohio fred]

That certainly is a great find .To bad there wasn't someway to return it to the person i bet he was sorry over the loss of his ring.

 

[jamt225]

http://detectorcommunity.ning.com/profile/alistairmcpherson?xg_source=activity

 

[John LA]

Looks like it was make to put on a seal. Maybe to impress in sealing wax.

 

[floridason]

Hey man, verry cool find, yes it does look like a wax imprinter don't it. HH KC

floridason retired
2 MXT's, DX-1, lotsa coils

 

[Adrian SS]

The little critter on the left looks a bit like an Alien....Weeell, it looks like the one I saw anyhoo:

 

[jolin376200]

If I knew who the ring belonged to I would return it without question I am sure whoever lost it would love to have it back. just wish I knew a little history about it. It does look like some sort of seal but of what?

 

[Cupajo]

Great find!!

Wasn't exactly lost "forever"!!

Much of Germany was a crossroads for the Romans when they ruled the known world.

Lots of potential finds there, but one must be ever aware of buried explosives too.

GL&HH Friend,

CJ

 

[dave5710]

The little critter on the left that Adrian calls an alien, has a halo surrounding his head. That tells me it is either a saint or an angel. I don't recall hearing of any child (small) saints. So I would go with the angel. Anyone know of any stories where an angel appeared to a German monk, priest, or bishop? It sort of has a cartoon look to it.

 

[jolin376200]

Dave,
you are right it is an angel looking at a monk but I have looked and looked and can not find it anywhere on the web. I can not even find one that looks anything like it. like I said I think it is hand made so it might be one of a kind anybody know any MONKS they can ask.

 

[Old Katz]

Thats really a nice find. I'd take it aroound to some shops/experts and
see what information they can give you.
Katz

 

[Adrian SS]

Yep, for sure that little guy is an alien with the big eyes and a cheezy grin and the big fella he's talking to is Spock . (check out those ears and nose man)

 

[Adrian SS]

Just wondering if the priest is Thomas Muntzer 1488 - 1525. Check him out and see what you reckon??
Cannot figure the little guy yet

 

[jolin376200]

Ok People heres a little contest starting now first person that can find a picture of this ring not counting the one I posted will get 20 dollars cash private email me your address along with the picture and I will send it to you no questions asked. I really want to know what this ring is all about. And if I find it first then you all have to give me 20 dollars

 

[petrlukas]

This most likely is the ring used by frather to seal wax on letters.
Petr

 

[srf2112]

Hey Jolin, that ring find is unbelievable. I am definitely no expert but my sister was an art prof. at the Univ. of Hawaii for many years and from the little bit I picked up from her, I can tell you that the styling of the figures is very, very old. ( Then again you probably realized that already ). The ring ( just an uneducated guess ) may be several hundred, or more, years old. As the others have pointed out, it definitely looks to be made for leaving wax impressions in which case it most likely belonged to someone with stature, maybe even someone with historical significance. You never know. I completely agree with you in trying to find out it's history. How likely is any body's guess but there's a definite possibility it may be very valuable. My suggestion would be to ask a religious scholar if you can. Even if he/she can't give you a definitive answer they would probably be able to point you to someone who could. Also maybe melt some wax and leave an impression in it with the ring. It may bring out some hidden details. Good luck on tracking down its history and definitely keep us posted about what you learn. Great find !
Scott

 

[jolin376200]

Scott and all
I have emailed several places to ask if anyone knows anything about this ring and am still waiting for a response to my emails. If anyone has information or knows someone I can email please let me know. I can also send you a picture by email so that you can forward it on my behalf. My overall goal here is to find out about the ring and hopefully track down the owner and return it to him/her. Scott the Ring is very old I am guessing several hundred years probally passed down for through the generations. It was hand carved and put together by hand and is made of all Silver.

 

[Nauti]

Firstly,i do not believe this ring to be a seal.Most seals have an impressed design so that when the seal is pushed into the wax the design will be raised in the wax.With this ring it would be the other way round....the design on the ring is raised so that when it is pushed into the wax the design in the wax would be hollowed out and not stand proud.I believe the ring may have had a coloured glass face over the design which has been lost over time in the soil and i believe it may have been in the soil a long time.I've seen similar designs of ring before and if i'm right(although i'm not saying i am) i think the ring may be medieval.
I live in England and am involved with a scheme called the portable antiquities scheme....basically it is a scheme where detectorists can voluntarily get their finds recorded so that archeologists can build up a better picture of the history of our country.We have our own field liason officer who records our finds in our area and i will show her a picture of the ring. If she
can't identify it she knows many experts that may shed some light on it.
I would say that if a ring like that were found over here it would end up being classified as treasure...i think it may be an important find.Please don't get too excited though.....i am no expert and i may be totally wrong but to me it looks like this find is a bit special.I will let you know as soon as i find out. Regards,Neil.

 

[srf2112]

Jolin,

Just some thoughts and ramblings.
NN does have a point as far as the ring being/ not being used for wax seal impressions. Although the opposite may be true in that the ring would leave a raised design, overall, with the figures impressed into it, like a framed picture. I highly doubt the ring ever had glass in it as glass was exceedingly rare in antiquity and shows no signs of having any way to mount it on the ring. ( you can't just pour molten glass into the metal of the ring , like a jell-o mold, it would crack immediately from thermal shock ). To me the ring design definitely looks "functional" i.e. it was 'used" for something that's why my bet is that it was a wax impression tool and not simply a jewelry accessory. Also, as we speculated before, the styling definitely looks as if it could be medieval. ( very, very old ) The part I would be concerned about is Neil's final point that the ring would probably definitely be classified as "treasure" and as such may be subject to official "claims". Being that you found it in Germany, you may be safe but be careful who you tell what to or you may have someone knocking at your door telling you to hand it over. Don't get me wrong, I'm a proponent of saving and preserving history but entities ( like the British govt.with their infamous tax and antiquity laws ) would love to get their greedy little hands on it and give you (the true owner now ) a percentage. ( You may recall we had a Revolutionary War some time back over the British government's policies towards taxes etc, it was in all the history books ).
The ring is yours now, you earned it. If the "Royal Dept. of Give Us Your Money & Valuables" or any other panhandling official entity does contact you, tell them to get their own detector and go out and EARN it. I got your back.
HH
Scott