old ring

detector dave · Jan 24, 2009

I have posted this ring befor but I am trying to find out how old it may be. I found it at a park that was used back in the 1850's.

BuckleBoy · Jan 24, 2009

Gold plated Decorative ring--I'd date it to the late 1800s.

Here's a post where I found a similar ring, along with a video of me finding it in a soybean field. The site in that field where I found mine was torn down by the '30s but abandoned well before that. It was around by 1860 at the latest and then uninhabited by about 1910.

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,188809.0.html

No markings on the ring, I assume?

Regards,

Buckleboy

detector dave · Jan 24, 2009

There are no markings on the ring, a very thin gold band with what apears to be an overlay of cermamic in green. I have never seen any thing like this. The ring is gold I am sure of that but have no idea of what the value would be on something like this.

detector de metales · Jan 24, 2009

Nice Ring..
Ceramic overlay??
Was that common back then?
J2

detector dave · Jan 24, 2009

detector de metales said:
Nice Ring..
Ceramic overlay??
Was that common back then?
J2

I have no Idea if this is custom or a comon practice back then, I have looked every where on the internet but have never found a ring like this one.

BuckleBoy · Jan 24, 2009

Dave,

I think that is green patina on the brass where the gold has worn off the ring. You can see the same color of green down in the grooves of the ring where the design is, where the gold plating has worn off.

Regards,

Buckles

Angelo · Jan 24, 2009

I'm thinking Enamel Band Ring.

Here's a picture of a modern one.

Tony

CRUSADER · Jan 25, 2009

Angelo said:
I'm thinking Enamel Band Ring.

Here's a picture of a modern one.

Tony

At first I thought enamel but they that would sit in the low points & not the high points. The high points in the photo look like green patina. But I need a better photo to tell.

I'm going with Gold Plated.

BuckleBoy · Jan 25, 2009

What VDI number is it on your spectrum? :wink:

detector dave · Jan 25, 2009

Here is a pic that shows a side view. This is not patina on the ring. I know for a fact that it is not a brass ring, this photo may help. This photo shows the seperation of the thin gold band and the layer of glaze.

detector de metales · Jan 25, 2009

What came first the chicken or the egg?
What i mean by that is was it gold plated and worn off as a layer.. (yes I do see the layering effect on the last photo).
Or is it a layer on top of the gold?? I'm not sure why anyone would place a layer on top of gold... just my opinion..
J2

CRUSADER · Jan 25, 2009

detector de metales said:
What came first the chicken or the egg?
What i mean by that is was it gold plated and worn off as a layer.. (yes I do see the layering effect on the last photo).
Or is it a layer on top of the gold?? I'm not sure why anyone would place a layer on top of gold... just my opinion..
J2

expensive taste

BuckleBoy · Jan 25, 2009

OK folks. I will post a photo in a bit of my similar ring's layer of gold gilding coming off of the inside of it.

Just out of curiosity, how do you know that the ring is gold? Swipe it under your Spectrum and post the VDI number.

BuckleBoy · Jan 25, 2009

Here are three photos of the ring I found:

Your ring clearly shows the gold gilding from the inside peeling off in a thin sheet:

And the most telling photo is the first photo. The Same color of green is visible down in the design. Why would there be ceramic or enamel in the middle of the design over top of the gold there (where the red circle is in the photo below)? The answer is that on the high points (most of the outside of the ring), the gilding has worn off, and in this one spot (and maybe others on the ring), the design that is stamped in is wide enough that there has been enough wear to wear through the gold gilding in the center of several of the larger swirls. What you're seeing is the patina of dug brass, with a bit of gold gilding left, down in the design.

Your original question was about the ring's age. At that point, I have given the best answer that I can. In terms of value--your ring is worth whatever someone would pay for a cool, gold plated late-1800s ring.

Regards,

Buckleboy

detector dave · Jan 26, 2009

I have found gold plated rings manny times, this is not a gold plated ring. I am not 100% sure if it is pur gold but I know that the green is a form of glaze and not patina. I have look at the ring very close and can not see any markings. The ring is very different than any thing i have ever seen. I have looked on the internet and can not find any thing about it. I do not know what the VDI is at this time. The area that apears to be a gold color is not tarnished. I do not know how to discribe the ring any beter than that, I may have to take it some where so thay can test it and look at it in person. I thank you all for your help but I think this is one you would have to see in person to know for sure what I am talking about. Good luck this year and i hope you all find tuns of gold.

pippinwhitepaws · Jan 26, 2009

rolled gold was a popular method of using gold prior to electric plating tech...many pocket watchs and jewelry were made using this method.
a sheet of gold is placed over the base metal...rolled into one piece.

Detectingfreak · Jan 26, 2009

ill pay $2 for it!

taz42o · Jan 26, 2009

This link is from sears and roebuck 1900s catalog . Gold filled rings, like pippinwhitepaws said not plated but rolled or drawn over base metal.

http://metaldetectingforum.com/catalog/goldfilledrings.jpg

BuckleBoy · Jan 27, 2009

Don't leave us hanging! When you get the ring tested for gold content please come back and update this thread. Or you could simply swipe it under the coil of your White's Spectrum and the VDI number would save you a trip to town. :wink:

CRUSADER · Jan 27, 2009

taz42o said:
This link is from sears and roebuck 1900s catalog . Gold filled rings, like pippinwhitepaws said not plated but rolled or drawn over base metal.

http://metaldetectingforum.com/catalog/goldfilledrings.jpg

Excellent info with the link.

Plated, rolled, leafed, Eletroplated etc.. are all good descriptors for essentially the same thing. Gold over base metal, ie not solid gold.

The interesting discussion here is whether it was enamelled or had some other process going on.

Please report back when you have an expert opinion, as I would love to know?