Finger Ring
Unknown Artist
7th century
Medium
Gold wire, garnet cabochon
Dimensions
Overall: 13/16 x 11/16 x 3/16 in. (2 x 1.7 x 0.5 cm) bezel: 1/4 x 3/16 x 1/8 in. (0.6 x 0.5 x 0.3 cm)
Classification
Metalwork-Gold
Culture
Frankish
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.192.218
Art Historical Context
This exquisite 7th-century Frank finger ring, crafted from delicate gold wire and adorned with polished garnet cabochon, exemplifies the refined metalworking of early medieval Europe. Measuring just under an inch in diameter, its slender bezel setting highlights the gem's deep red glow, a testament to the skilled artisans who twisted and shaped the gold into a hoop suitable for daily wear. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum Art's Medieval Art department it entered the collection as a gift from financier J. Pierpont Morgan in 1917. Originating from the Frankish culture—associated with the Merov...