Finger ring (piece)

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This Roman iron finger ring, inset with a sardonyx intaglio, was found at Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh. It resembles some found in the Rhineland, and was probably made in the Mediterranean. It was an antique when it was brought to Britain.

The stone has a bust of a Greek warrior, thought to be Alexander the Great. Only two iron stumps remain of the ring itself. The intaglio was made between 27 BC and AD 14, but it came to Scotland during the Roman occupation between 80 and 180 AD.

Although the Roman occupation in Scotland was strictly military, it did result in a number of fine objects being imported. These spread by various means to the population around the camps, where they were used as status symbols in the local society.

Record details

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• Online ID: 000-100-037-658-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: National Museums Scotland
  Project description   View all records in project
• Ref: National Museums Scotland  X.FT 97
• Date: Manufacture of ring: between 27 BC and 14 AD
  
• Material: Sardonyx, in remains of an iron ring; carving represents head of a Green warrior
  Ring / intaglio
  
• Dimensions: 0.75" x 0.55"
  
• What: Ring / intaglio
  
• Subject:
• Who: D.S. Archibald, 2/3 Lady Nairn Crescent, Edinburgh 8 (Received award of £150)
  
• Where: Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh, Holyrood Park
  
• Event:
• Description: Rhenish intaglio ring of sardonyx and iron, from Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh
  
• References:
  • Clarke, D.V., Breeze, D.J., and Mackay, G. The Romans in Scotland. An introduction to the collections of the National Museums of Antiquities of Scotland. Edinburgh: National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland, 1980, p. 40. 
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