Genuine Pagan “Evil Eyes” Roman Bronze Ring Sz 9 AD300 Start Price USD 239.99 Current Price USD 239.99 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Thursday, November 13, 2008 End Time Saturday, December 13, 2008 Location Lummi Island, WA See more about 'Genuine Pagan “Evil Eyes” Roman Bronze Ring Sz 9 AD300' Description Your browser does not support JavaScript. To view this page, enable JavaScript if it is disabled or upgrade your browser. Click here to see almost 800 archaeology/ancient history books and 500 authentic ancient artifacts on our eBay store! Very Elegant and Bold Size 9 Genuine Ancient Roman Bronze Ring 300 A.D. CLASSIFICATION: Ancient Roman Bronze Ring bezel featuring engraved concentric circles; symbols of both Roman Paganism and ancient Christianity; and accented raised “arrow” accents. Antique Handcrafted Nineteenth Century Scottish Amethyst Semi-Precious Gemstone. ATTRIBUTION: Eastern Roman Empire (Provincial Pannonia – present-day Hungary), Third or Fourth Century A.D. SIZE/MEASUREMENTS: Fits ring size 9 (U.S.). Diameter: 28mm * 22 1/2mm (overall dimensions excluding gemstone); 20mm * 19 1/2mm (inner diameter). Bezel: 11 1/2mm (diameter) * 8mm (thickness – excluding gemstone). Gemstone: 8 1/2mm (diameter) * 5 1/2mm (thickness). 2.88 carats (approximate weight). Tapered Width Band: 8 1/2mm (at bezel) * 6 1/2mm (at sides) * 4mm (at back). Weight: 9.03 grams. CONDITION: Excellent, entirely intact, evidencing only moderate wear and light porosity (surface pitting caused by contact with earth while buried). Professionally conserved. DETAIL: A handsome, nicely constructed Roman bronze ring with very bold and handsome features. The ring sports a large bezel which at one time held a large gemstone. The ring was not actually recovered with the gemstone intact, however usually this style of bronze ring was set either with a glass gemstone (glass was quite costly in the ancient Roman world) or with some form of quartz crystal; i.e. clear quartz, orange quartz (“carnelian”), or purple quartz (“amethyst”). The ring is very heavy and rugged, and much like a contemporary ring, of one-piece construction, The more archaic rings produced by Roman artisans were characteristically made in two pieces; an incomplete ring (a “shank”) with a separately crafted bezel which was brazed to the shank in order to assemble the ring. This particular specimen is a relatively sophisticated ring, and although crafted in bronze, was nonetheless surely costly. A truly expensive ring would have been crafted in gold or silver. In the ancient world, silver was fairly rare, and oftentimes half the cost of gold (as opposed to the current ratio of gold being fifty times more expensive than silver). Nonetheless though executed in bronze, this particular ring was a few steps above the ordinary ring of the era. You might notice that besides the fact that it is heavy (and even bronze was costly in the Roman world), there are also many “upgrade” features. First, there are two raised lands in the form of an arrow on each side of the bezel perpendicular to the bands. This was a popular ornamental flourish in higher-end rings of the era. If you look closely you’ll also see an engraved accent line on both sides of the band just below the bezel, which follows the contours of and accentuates the shape of the bezel. You might also notice that on each side of the band, near the bezel and trailing toward the back of the band, are six punched concentric circles, each composed of two rows of three circles, a total of twelve between the two sides of the band. These punched concentric circles are particularly significant, and laden with symbolism. The symbolism of such “eyes” found on items of personal adornment arose in very ancient times…much more ancient than the even the Phoenicians and Persians who predated both the Romans and the antecedent civilization of classical Ancient Greece. Ancient pagan beliefs encompassed the idea that a glance from a powerful and evil individual could bring about adverse consequences. Thus some sort of protection against such an event was considered by many imperative. Items of personal adornment such as this ring were thought to protect the wearer from the "evil eye" by the proviso of always watchful open eyes (the concentric circles). It is quite likely that the ring was worn most of a lifetime, as it would take most of a life time to wear down the punched concentric circles and engraved accent lines to the extent evidenced. In fact the extent of the wear is significant enough that it even suggests that perhaps the ring may have been worn during the lifetime of more than one owner. Perhaps it was a family heirloom handed down between generations. The ring was not recovered with the original gemstone it was created with. However clearly it once held a gemstone, and the empty cavity seemed to invite the remounting of a gemstone. So as to preserve a sense of continuity, we mounted a large, natural, antique, handcrafted deep purple amethyst semi-precious gemstone using jeweler’s epoxy. The gemstone is quite secure, but if you at time in the future wished to remove it, this could easily be accomplished using some thinner or nail polish remover. The gemstone was produced in the eighteenth century from the coastal Devonian lava beds of Angus, Scotland. It was handcrafted into this polished cabochon gemstone by a nineteenth century Russian artisan near Yekaterinburg, Russia, a center famed for centuries for the elaborate jewelry produced using precious and semi-precious gemstones. Amethyst has been popularly used through recorded history for the production of jewelry, beads, and amulets, and often associated with royalty. Amethyst, carnelian, citrine, quartz, and agate gemstones and jewelry were very popular throughout the Roman Empire, and carnelian and amethyst were both widely used to carve cameos and signet/intaglio rings. Aside from being quite beautiful, the seals and signets had the practical advantage of not sticking to wax. Though the gemstone is not as old as the ring, given the fact that the Romans made wide use of amethyst in their jewelry, it seemed an appropriate gemstone to enhance this ring’s beauty. Fate has been kind, and the ring has been preserved in wonderful condition. The obvious, though nonetheless moderate extent of wear that the ring evidences from ancient usage should not be construed so as to be a source of disappointment. You must keep in mind that the ring was produced by an artisan and sold to a patron or consumer with the idea that the ring would be enjoyed and worn by the purchaser. And without any regard to twenty-first century posterity, that precisely what happened! The original Roman owner of this ring wore it, enjoyed it, and probably never could have in his most delusional moment ever dreamed that almost 100 generations later the ring would still exist. It should likewise come as no surprise that upon close inspection are detected the telltale signs that the ring spent thousands of years in the soil. Porosity is fine surface pitting (oxidation, corrosion) caused by extended burial in caustic soil. Many small ancient metal artifacts such as this are extensively disfigured and suffer substantial degradation as a consequence of the ordeal of being buried for millennia. It is not at all unusual to find metal artifacts decomposed to the point where they are not much more substantial than discolored patterns in the soil. Actually most smaller ancient artifacts such as this are so badly oxidized that oftentimes all that is left is a green (bronze) or red (iron) stain in the soil, or an artifact which crumbles in your hand. However this specimen is not so afflicted, and certainly has not been disfigured. To the inspection of the casual admirer, it simply looks like an ancient ring, nicely surfaced, no immediately discernible blemishes. You have to look very closely to detect the telltale signs indicating the ring was buried for millennia. This ring spent almost 2,000 years buried, yet by good fortune there is only a very light degree of porosity evidenced. It happened to come to rest in very gentle soil conditions. The ring’s overall integrity is relatively undiminished by the passage of time, and it has been professionally conserved. The ring is quite sturdy, beautifully toned with a dark chocolate brown color with golden undertones, very characteristic of ancient bronze, and quite handsome. The Romans were of course very fond of ornate personal jewelry including bracelets worn both on the forearm and upper arm, brooches, pendants, hair pins, earrings intricate fibulae and belt buckles, and of course, rings. This is an exceptional piece of Roman jewelry, a very handsome artifact, and eminently wearable. Aside from being significant to the history of ancient jewelry, it is also an evocative relic of one of the world’s greatest civilizations and than ancient world’s most significant military machine; the glory and light which was known as the “Roman Empire”. HISTORY: Bronze is the name given to a wide range of alloys of copper, typically mixed in ancient times with zinc or tin. The Bronze Age followed the Neolithic, and as the name implies, saw the production of bronze tools, weapons and armor which were either hard or more durable than their stone predecessors. Traditionally archaeology has maintained that the earlier bronze was produced by the Maikop, a proto-Indo-European, proto-Celtic culture of Caucasus prehistory around 3500 B.C. Recent evidence however suggests that the smelting of bronze might be as much as several thousand years older. Shortly after the emergence of bronze technology in the Caucasus region, bronze technology emerged in ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean), Anatolia (Turkey) and the Iranian Plateau. By the late fourth to early third millennium B.C. many Bronze Age Cultures had emerged. Some of the more notable were the Celtic cultures of Middle Europe stretching from Hungary to Poland and Germany, including the Urnfield, Lusatian, and (Iron Age Transitional) Hallstatt Cultures. The Shang in ancient China also developed a significant Bronze Age culture, noted for large bronze burial urns. Britain’s Bronze Age cultures included the Beaker, Wessex, Deverl, and Rimbury. Cornwall was the principle source of tin not only for Britain but exported throughout the Mediterranean, and copper was produced from the Great Orme mine in North Wales. Though much of the raw minerals may have come from Britain (and to a lesser extent Spain), it was the Aegean world which controlled the trade in bronze. The great seafaring Minoan Empire appears to have controlled, coordinated, and defended the Bronze Age trade. Tin and charcoal were imported into Cyprus, where locally mined copper was mined and alloyed with the tin from Britain. It appears that the Bronze Age collapsed with the Minoan Empire, to be replaced by a Dark Age and the eventual rise of the Iron Age Myceneans. Evidence suggests that the precipitating event might have been the eruption of Thera and the ensuing tsunami, which was only about 40 miles north of Crete, the capital of the Minoan empire. It is known that the bread-basket of the Minoan empire, the area north of the Black Sea lost population, and thereafter many Minoan colony/client-states lost large populations to extreme famines or pestilence. Thus with the end to the shipping of tin throughout the Mediterranean the Bronze Age trade network is believed to have failed, and the end of the Bronze Age and the rise of the Iron age is normally associated with the disturbances created by large population movements in the 12th century B.C. The end of the Bronze Age saw the emergency of new technologies and civilizations which heralded the new Iron Age. Although iron was in many respects much inferior to bronze (steel was still thousands of years away), iron had the advantage that it could be produced using local resources during the dark ages that followed the Minoan collapse. Bronze also resists corrosion and metal fatigue better than iron. Bronze was still used during the Iron Age, but for many purposes the weaker iron was sufficiently strong to serve in its place. As an example, Roman officers were equipped with bronze swords while foot soldiers had to make do with iron blades. Amethyst was one of the first gemstones used by man. The name is derived from the Greek term "amethustos", meaning not drunk. Amethyst came to Greece from Egypt just after the death of Alexander the Great. Most ancient Mediterranean cultures believed that amethyst would protect against becoming intoxicated, and would protect soldiers from harm in battle. Throughout ancient and medieval history, the color purple was traditionally the color of royalty. Consequentially Amethyst has been used since the dawn of recorded history to adorn the wealthy, as well as royalty, and was extensively used since ancient times for carving intaglio gemstones and seals. Amethyst is also mentioned in the Bible (Exodus 28:19; 39:12) as one of the 12 stones adorning the breastplate (hoshen) of the high priests of Yahweh. Amethyst is the most highly valued variety of quartz. The purple coloring is caused by the presence of compounds of iron or manganese. Aside from the gorgeous color, Amethyst is also very popular in the production of jewelry due to the fact it is very hard and durable. Some of the other popular varieties of quartz include rock crystal (colorless quartz), citrine (yellow quartz), and aventurine (green quartz). Amethyst, like all quartz crystals, produces an electric voltage, a property known as piezoelectric. Unable to understand the characteristic, ancient cultures attributed many mystical properties have been attributed to the various varieties of quartz gemstones. Quartz gemstones were believed to act as psychic purifiers, tuning one into their inner "vibrations”. It was believed that quartz possessed the ability to amplify emotions, enhance concentration and intuition, and neutralize "negative energies". One of the greatest civilizations of recorded history was the ancient Roman Empire. In exchange for a very modest amount of contemporary currency, you can possess a small part of that great civilization in the form of a 2,000 year old piece of jewelry. The Roman civilization, in relative terms the greatest military power in the history of the world, was founded in the 8th century (B.C.). In the 4th Century (B.C.) the Romans were the dominant power on the Italian Peninsula, having defeated the Etruscans and Celts. In the 3rd Century (B.C.) the Romans conquered Sicily, and in the following century defeated Carthage, and controlled the Greece. Throughout the remainder of the 2nd Century (B.C.) the Roman Empire continued its gradual conquest of the Hellenistic (Greek Colonial) World by conquering Syria and Macedonia; and finally came to control Egypt in the 1st Century (B.C.). The pinnacle of Roman power was achieved in the 1st Century (A.D.) as Rome conquered much of Britain and Western Europe. For a brief time, the era of “Pax Romana”, a time of peace and consolidation reigned. Civilian emperors were the rule, and the culture flourished with a great deal of liberty enjoyed by the average Roman Citizen. However within 200 years the Roman Empire was in a state of steady decay, attacked by Germans, Goths, and Persians. In the 4th Century (A.D.) the Roman Empire was split between East and West. The Great Emperor Constantine temporarily arrested the decay of the Empire, but within a hundred years after his death the Persians captured Mesopotamia, Vandals infiltrated Gaul and Spain, and the Goths even sacked Rome itself. Most historians date the end of the Western Roman Empire to 476 (A.D.) when Emperor Romulus Augustus was deposed. However the Eastern Roman Empire (The Byzantine Empire) survived until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 A.D. At its peak, the Roman Empire stretched from Britain in the West, throughout most of Western, Central, and Eastern Europe, and into Asia Minor. Valuables such as coins and jewelry were commonly buried for safekeeping, and inevitably these ancient citizens would succumb to one of the many perils of the ancient world. Oftentimes the survivors of these individuals did not know where the valuables had been buried, and today, two thousand years later caches of coins and rings are still commonly uncovered throughout Europe and Asia Minor. Roman Soldiers oftentimes came to possess large quantities of “booty” from their plunderous conquests, and routinely buried their treasure for safekeeping before they went into battle. If they met their end in battle, most often the whereabouts of their treasure was likewise, unknown. Throughout history these treasures have been inadvertently discovered by farmers in their fields, uncovered by erosion, and the target of unsystematic searches by treasure seekers. With the introduction of metal detectors and other modern technologies to Eastern Europe in the past three or four decades, an amazing number of new finds are seeing the light of day two thousand years or more after they were originally hidden by their past owners. And with the liberalization of post-Soviet Eastern Europe, new markets have opened eager to share in these treasures of the Roman Empire. Domestic shipping is $3.99 for first class mail or $6.99 for Priority Mail. Domestic rates include USPS Delivery Confirmation (you might be able to update the status of your shipment on-line at the USPS Web Site). Canadian shipments are $3.99 for Air Mail; International shipments are $4.99 for Air Mail (and generally are NOT tracked; trackable shipments are EXTRA). I can add most other items I sell to the shipment for only $0.99 each. Your purchase will ordinarily be shipped within 48 hours of payment. We package as well as anyone in the business, with lots of protective padding and containers. Insurance is available for both domestic and international shipments ($8 for domestic shipments; $18 for international shipments; ONLY required when PayPal is used – you may deduct this amount if you prefer an uninsured shipment AND you pay by check or money order). We do NOT recommend uninsured shipments, and expressly disclaim any responsibility for the loss of an uninsured shipment. Unfortunately the contents of parcels are easily “lost” or misdelivered by postal employees – even in the USA. If you intend to pay via PayPal, please be aware that PayPal Protection Policies REQUIRE insured, trackable shipments. If you do NOT want an insured shipment, send us a check or money order and deduct the invoiced insurance premium. We do offer U.S. Postal Service Priority Mail, Registered Mail, and Express Mail for both international and domestic shipments, as well United Parcel Service (UPS) and Federal Express (Fed-Ex). Please ask for a rate quotation. I prefer your personal check or money order over any other form of payment – and I will ship immediately upon receipt of your check (no “holds”). If upon receipt of the item you are disappointed for any reason whatever, I offer a no questions asked return policy. Send it back, I will give you a complete refund of the purchase price. Most of the items I offer come from the collection of a family friend who was active in the field of Archaeology for over forty years. However many of the items also come from purchases I make in Eastern Europe, India, and from the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean/Near East) from various institutions and dealers. Though I have always had an interest in archaeology, my own academic background was in sociology and cultural anthropology. After my retirement however, I found myself drawn to archaeology as well. Aside from my own personal collection, I have made extensive and frequent additions of my own via purchases on Ebay (of course), as well as many purchases from both dealers and institutions throughout the world – but especially in the Near East and in Eastern Europe. I spend over half of my year out of the United States, and have spent much of my life either in India or Eastern Europe. In fact much of what we generate on Yahoo, Amazon and Ebay goes to support The Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, as well as some other worthy institutions in Europe connected with Anthropology and Archaeology. I acquire some small but interesting collections overseas from time-to-time, and have as well some duplicate items within my own collection which I occasionally decide to part with. Though I have a collection of ancient coins numbering in the tens of thousands, my primary interest is in ancient jewelry. My wife also is an active participant in the “business” of antique and ancient jewelry, and is from Russia. I would be happy to provide you with a certificate/guarantee of authenticity for any item you purchase from me. There is a $2 fee for mailing under separate cover. Whenever I am overseas I have made arrangements for purchases to be shipped out via domestic mail. If I am in the field, you may have to wait for a week or two for a COA to arrive via international air mail. But you can be sure your purchase will arrive properly packaged and promptly – even if I am absent. And when I am in a remote field location with merely a notebook computer, at times I am not able to access my email for a day or two, so be patient, I will always respond to every email. Please see our "ADDITIONAL TERMS OF SALE." Place a Bid!