strictly ecclesiastical sense, but of one worn by a bishop, is given
in a letter written by St. Avit, Archbishop of Vienne (494–525), to
his colleague, Apollinaris, Bishop of Valencia (ca. 520): “The ring
you have been kind enough to offer me should be made as follows: In
the middle of a very thin iron hoop, representing two dolphins facing
each other, a double seal should be set by means of two pivots, so that
either side may be shown or hidden at will and in turn, and offer,
alternately, to the eyes a green stone or a pale electrum. Let not
this metal be as I have sometimes seen it, easily tarnished in the
cleanest hands, and similar to the impure mixture of gold that has not
been exposed to the fire; let it not resemble the alloy which formerly
the king of the Goths introduced into his coinage, an emblem of his
downfall. Let my electrum be of a medium color, having at once the
tawny hue of gold and the whiteness of silver, precious by their union
and enhancing the brilliant green of the emerald when it appears. Let
my monogram be engraved on the seal surrounded by my name, so that it
may be read. Opposite the setting, the middle of the ring shall be
formed by the tails of the dolphins; to set between these an oblong
stone shall be sought, pointed at the extremities.”[426] It will
be noted that this was not a gold ring, but an iron one, and thus
essentially different from the recognized episcopal rings.
The oldest formula used at the conferring of the pontifical ring upon a
bishop, is found in the Sacramental of St. Gregory, 590 A.D.
and, translated into English, runs as follows: “Receive this ring of
distinction and honor, a symbol of faith, that thou mayst seal what is
to be sealed, and reveal what is to be revealed, and that to believers
baptized into the faith, who have fallen but are penitent, thou mayst
by the mystery of reconciliation open the gates of the Kingdom of
Heaven.” A much shorter formula is that in the Pontifical of Ecgberht,
Archbishop of York; it reads: “Receive the ring of the pontifical honor
that thou mayst be endowed with sound faith.” At present the following
simple formula is used: “Receive the ring of faith as a sign that thou
wilt guard the Bride of God, Holy Church, with undaunted faith.”
A very early mention of the true episcopal rings is to be found
in the writings of Isidore, Archbishop of Seville from 601 to 636
A.D.[427] He definitely states that the ring was one of the
canonical insignia of the episcopate and terms it “a sign of pontifical
honor, or a seal of secrets,” adding that priests must keep many
secrets confided to them hidden in their breasts as though beneath
a seal.[428] At about the same time a decree of Pope Boniface IV,
promulgated in the third council of Rome, in 610, mentions a pontifical
ring, and in the fourth council of Toledo, in December, 633, a canon
treating of the restitution to his office of an unjustly deposed
bishop, directs that he be given anew his stole, his ring, and his
pastoral staff.[429]
The liturgical kissing of a bishop’s hand usually means a kiss
impressed upon the ring he is wearing at the ceremony. That in the
works of Rabanus Maurus, Archbishop of Mainz (786–856), and in those
of others of his time, no mention is made of episcopal rings of
investiture, cannot be taken to prove that none were worn in this
period, but only that they were not yet in general use.[430] The
distinct evidence contained in the canon of the Council of Toledo, over
which Isidore of Seville presided in 633, and the still earlier formula
of investiture in the Sacramental of Gregory, 590 A.D., must
be accepted as conclusive evidence that such rings were conferred.
Until after the eleventh century, almost all the Episcopal rings were
used as signets and the Sacramental of St. Gregory alludes to this use.
The ring was generally worn on the index finger of the right hand,
the middle of the three fingers uplifted in conferring a blessing;
but, when celebrating mass, the bishop transferred it from the index
finger to the annular. At the present day it is always worn on this
latter finger. The removal of the ring from the index is explained by
Garanti,[431] as being an act of humility, since the ring was regarded
as a kind of crown upon the index, “for sages say that the ring is the
crown of the hand,” and this crown should be removed in the presence of
Christ. In our day bishops wear but one ring, but in old pictures
and effigies they are shown wearing several, and sometimes even a thumb
ring. The celebrated portrait of Leo X, by Raphael, represents the pope
wearing no less than six rings, and the hands of Julius II in Raphael’s
portrait are adorned with rings of equal number.
[Illustration: PORTRAIT OF POPE CLEMENT IX (1667–1670) BY CARLO
MARATTA
Ring with square-cut, beveled stone on fourth finger of right hand
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of Archer M.
Huntington, Esq.]
[Illustration: PORTRAIT OF POPE JULIUS II (1503–1513) BY RAFAEL
Six rings, three on each hand; on index, fourth and little fingers
Uffizi Palace. Florence.]
While the sapphire eventually became the stone especially assigned for
use in episcopal rings, the older specimens which have been preserved
for us show that, in early times, many other precious stones were
employed for this purpose. Indeed, the emerald, or some green stone,
seems to have been given the preference at one time, if we can judge
from the letter sent by Avitus, Archbishop of Vienne to Apollinaris,
Bishop of Valencia. Besides rubies and emeralds, balas-rubies,
turquoises, chalcedonies and even the opal were used, while pearls and
garnets, also appear occasionally.
Possibly the earliest known specimen of an episcopal ring is in the
treasury of the cathedral of Metz. It is believed to have belonged to
Arnulphus, who was consecrated Bishop of Metz in 614. This ring, which
has been sometimes ascribed to the fourth century, is set with an
opaque milk-white carnelian.
An episcopal ring found at Oxford and now in the Waterton Collection,
Victoria and Albert Museum, is a curious specimen of the adaptation of
antique gems to Christian uses. The gold circlet is set with an antique
plasma engraved with the bust of a female, the pagan original doing
duty for some Christian saint, or perhaps for the Virgin Mary.[432] An
intaglio of Jupiter-Serapis was provided by the monks of Durham with an
inscription designating it to be a portrait of St. Oswald. Cameos were
also used, on occasion, as we read in the enumeration of the precious
stones and rings donated by Henry III to the shrine of St. Edward in
Westminster Abbey,[433] the following entry: “j chamah in uno annulo
pontificali.”
Occasionally a stone was taken from some antique ornament and set in an
episcopal ring. Of this kind is the pierced sapphire in Mr. Waterton’s
collection, and probably another ring described in the Wardrobe Books
of Edward I and which belonged to Robert, Bishop of Coventry and
Lichfield, who died in 1295. The old description calls this “a golden
ring with a perforated ruby.”[434] The same records mention a gold ring
with a sapphire, the ornament being, as was supposed, the work of St.
Dunstan, who is reputed to have been a skilful worker in metals.
A letter written in 867 by Charles the Bald to Pope Nicholas I,
mentions a ring sent to Ebbo, Bishop of Rheims, by Judith, the mother
of Charles the Bald. This ring was given by the empress at the time of
the birth of her son, so that Ebbo, who had been made bishop because of
his piety and sanctity, should remember the child in his prayers. In
later years, whenever the good bishop was in trouble, he used to send
his ring to the empress with an humble petition for aid, and the letter
of Emperor Charles was written as a result of a most earnest appeal of
Bishop Ebbo, after he had been deposed from his office and subjected to
persecution.[435]
[Illustration: Christian ring of glass. Design shows snake and
doves, a cross, the Greek letters _alpha_ and _omega_
and the Latin word _Salus_. Bosio.
“Roma Sotterranea,” Roma, 1650]]
[Illustration: 1, Venetian ring. Bezel with engraved figure of
St. Mark is hollowed to enclose relics. 2, poison ring set with
a diamond and two rubies. The poison was concealed beneath the
bezel. See pages 36–39
Fairholt’s “Rambles of an Artist”]
[Illustration: Gold ring of Ahlstan, Bishop of Sherborne (824–860
A.D.)
Archæological Journal, vol. xx, p. 226, 1863]
[Illustration: Bishop’s ring of investiture. Bezel set with flat
crystal; two views. Said to have belonged to Robert of Anjou,
King of Naples (1309–1343 A.D.)
British Museum]
[Illustration: Lady’s memorial ring of enameled gold inscribed
“_R. C. Not lost but gone before,_” in gilt letters on a
white enamel ground. English, about 1800
Albert Figdor Collection, Vienna]
[Illustration: Mourning ring of gold. The head has the form of a
coffin with skull and cross-bones on the lid. When this is lifted
a heart is disclosed within. The hoop has two wires. On the sides
of the coffin is inscribed: “_Hier ist die Ruhe_” (Here is
rest). German. Eighteenth Century
Albert Figdor Collection, Vienna]
[Illustration: Massive silver mourning ring inscribed in Old
French, _dort couat_ (rest in peace). Found at Huy near
Statte, Belgium. French. Fifteenth Century
Albert Figdor Collection, Vienna]
It is said that only one episcopal ring from Anglo-Saxon times has
been preserved in England. This relic forms part of the Waterton
Collection in the Victoria and Albert Museum; it is of gold, nielloed,
and shows the letters of the name Ahlstan. This name was borne by a
Bishop of Sherborne who held the office from 824 to 867 A.D.,
his death occurring four years before the accession of Alfred the
Great.[436]
Niello is a mixture of silver, copper, lead, crude sulphur, and borax;
frequently a little antimony is added. The mixture is fused and pressed
into the design engraved upon a silver plate; when it has cooled
off it forms a deep black, brilliant, and tough, though not hard,
substance, like an enamel. The antimony on cooling, spreads slightly,
thus obviating any danger of undue contraction of the alloy, which
might fail to fill out the design exactly; occasionally, however,
the antimony expands unequally, producing some slight irregularities
of outline or surface. Sometimes the alloy is applied to the silver
background of the design, instead of to the design itself, so that
the latter appears white against a rich dark foundation. This variety
of enamelling was already used in Roman times; in our day it is most
extensively employed in Russia, where very beautiful work of the kind
is done, the lines being of hair-like fineness and delicacy.
In 886, at the degradation of two bishops who had been consecrated
without the consent of their metropolitan, their episcopal vestments
were rent, their croziers broken on their heads, and their episcopal
rings rudely snatched from their fingers. Here, as in cases of military
degradation, the ignominious removal of the insignia of rank served to
give public emphasis to the sentence passed upon the condemned.[437]
The Cathedral of Chichester has yielded a number of fine specimens of
mediæval episcopal rings. Notable among these as a curiosity is one
that belonged to Bishop Seffrid who died in 1151, for it is set with
a Gnostic gem showing the well-known cock-headed figure generally cut
to represent the divine principle the Gnostics called Abrasax (or
Abraxas). This is an intaglio on jasper, and the ring was found in the
bishop’s tomb. The fact that he was willing to wear it shows either
that he was ignorant of its being a Gnostic, and hence an heretical
design, or else that he was more than usually tolerant. Another of the
Chichester rings came from the tomb of Bishop Hilary (1146–1169); it is
of massive gold and is set with a sapphire. When the tomb was opened
the ring was on the thumb of the skeleton. In a stone coffin on which
were cut the letters Episcopus, with no personal name, there was found
a ring adorned with an octagonal sapphire, on four sides of which was
set a small emerald. As the sarcophagus contained a pastoral staff and
remains of a vestment, this was undoubtedly an episcopal ring. It will
have been remarked that of these rings two were set with sapphires,
but the ring of Archbishop Sewall (d. 1258), found in his tomb in the
Cathedral of York, and that from the tomb of Archbishop Greenfield (d.
1315), were each set with a ruby.[438]
[Illustration: Gold ring with inscription. “Buredruth” is
probably a personal name, and the Greek characters _alpha_
and _omega_ should have a religious significance. Late Saxon
British Museum]
[Illustration: Episcopal rings. 1, found in York Minster, tomb
of Archbishop Sewall (d. 1256); 2, found in tomb of Archbishop
Greenfield (d. 1315)
Fairholt’s “Rambles of an Artist”]
[Illustration: 1, Papal ring set with large crystal,
Londesborough Collection; 2, ring of Bishop Stanbury of Hereford
(1452–1474). Found in his tomb, 1843; two views
Fairholt’s “Rambles of an Artist”]
[Illustration: 1, silver ring, two clasped hands; inscription
signifies Jesus Nazarenus Rex. 2 and 3, rosary rings, with bosses
used to count the prayers recited
Londesborough Collection.
Fairholt’s “Rambles of an Artist”]
[Illustration: 1, gold ring set with Gnostic intaglio on jasper.
Found in tomb of Seffrid, Bishop of Chichester (1125–1151); three
views. 2, gold ring set with a sapphire. Found in tomb of Hilary,
Bishop of Chichester (1146–1169); two views. 3, gold ring set
with a sapphire and four emeralds. Found in tomb of unknown bishop
Archæological Journal, vol. xx. pl. opp. p. 235; 1863]
The mystic significance of the episcopal ring as typifying the union
of Christ with his Church was expressed by Innocent III (1198–1216) in
these words: “The ring is a sacrament of faith, by which Christ endows
his spouse the Holy Church.”[439] This can be taken as confirmatory
of the theory that the episcopal rings were directly derived from the
betrothal rings, and were not merely attributes of ecclesiastical rank.
So closely was the Bishop bound to his see, that his abandonment of it
to go to another was regarded by some as equivalent to the commission
of adultery.
A fine example of a sapphire-set episcopal ring was found in 1844,
during some alterations to the chapel of Notre Dame in the Cathedral
of Troyes. Several stone coffins were discovered, among them that
containing the remains of Hervée, Bishop of Troyes, consecrated in
1206. The body was clothed in full episcopal vestments. The ring had
fallen from the hand but was found at the left side of the body. It
had a diameter of 2 cm. (about ⅘ inch) and was set with a fine oblong
sapphire held in place by four claws.[440] The opening of the tomb of
Pope Boniface VIII (1294–1303) revealed the presence, on the gloved
hand of the dead pope, of a splendid gold ring, set with a sapphire of
quite exceptional size and beauty.[441]
In 1804, at the opening of a thirteenth-century archbishop’s sepulchre
in the Cathedral of Mainz, believed to be that of Archbishop Sigfroi
III, 1249, a fine pontifical ring was found; it is set with a large
ruby.[442] The bezel is of disproportionate size in comparison with
the dimensions of the rather slender circlet.[443] This ring is large
enough to be worn over a glove in accord with liturgical requirements.
It has been noted that in process of time the width and thickness of
the circlet were gradually increased, at first to make it harmonize
better with a large bezel; gradually, however, both bezel and hoop
were made so large as to render the ring a burden to the wearer, and
even difficult to keep from slipping off the finger. Indeed, it was
sometimes necessary to wear a second, closer-fitting ring _under_
it as a guard.[444]
The treasury of Canterbury Cathedral contained in 1315, according to an
inventory of the “Ornamenta Ecclesiastica,” a very rich and elaborate
pontifical ring. It is described as a large square ring, set with an
oblong emerald, four plasmas (leek-green quartz), and four garnets. The
other episcopal rings listed on this inventory were set with sapphires
bordered with small gems, one of them having a “black sapphire” set
_à jour_, and held in place by claws. While at this period great
latitude was exercised regarding the particular stone to be chosen for
the chief adornment of the ring, it was required that it should be one
of the more precious stones.[445]
The color of the stones chosen for the adornment of episcopal
rings always had a symbolical significance. The glowing red of the
ruby indicated glory, the clear blue of the sapphire, chastity and
happiness, the pure white of the rock-crystal, guilelessness, while the
hue of the amethyst called to mind the color of the wine used in the
Holy Eucharist. The emerald, as is well known, signified by its green
color the virtue of hope and also the Resurrection.
The general rule, expressed or understood, that a sapphire should be
set in an episcopal ring, seems to have been more commonly observed
in England in the earlier centuries than it was on the Continent.
Undoubtedly many of these stones were obtained at the time of the
Crusades. As English examples, Mr. O. M. Dalton cites the rings of
three early bishops,[446] namely, those of Flambard (1099–1128),
Geoffrey Rufus (1133–40) and William de St. Barbara (1143–52), now in
the Durham Chapter Library; all have sapphires. The same stone serves
as setting for the ring of William of Wykeham, a massive plain gold
hoop, exhibited by the Dean of Winchester at South Kensington in 1862,
to which the cathedral also contributed a thirteenth-century episcopal
ring set with a large sapphire cut _en cabochon_.[447] There is
as well the ring of William Wytlesey, Archbishop of Canterbury (d.
1374) in the possession of Sir Arthur Evans and that of John Stanbery,
Bishop of Hereford (d. 1474). The inventory of 28 Edward I lists
sapphire-set rings of the archbishops of Dublin and York as well as
of the bishops of Salisbury and St. Asaph. The rebel Piers Gaveston,
favorite of Edward II, carried off with him, among other royal jewels,
sapphire rings that had belonged to the Bishop of Bath and Wells and
to the Abbot of Abingdon. In the inventory of Elizabeth’s favorite
ecclesiastic, Archbishop Parker of Canterbury, is listed “a ringe with
a blewe sapphire,” valued at four pounds sterling.
Old records show that even in the fourteenth century, the sapphire,
although greatly favored for prelates’ rings, did not yet enjoy any
exclusive preference.
For example, during the reigns of Clement V, and John XXII, in Avignon
(1307–1334), the papal registers for 1317 note, in one case, “seven
gold rings with various stones for new cardinals, 68 gold florins.”
This, however, is followed by another entry recording “four gold rings
with Oriental sapphires for the consecration of prelates, 26 gold
florins,” and again “a gold ring with an Oriental sapphire for Cardinal
A, 23 florins.” Three years later, in 1320, we have “seven rings for
the seven new cardinals, three set with Oriental sapphires, three
others with Oriental emeralds, and one with a balas-ruby, the total
cost being 106 gold florins.”[448]
That the topaz at one time shared with the sapphire the honor of being
especially fitted for use in ecclesiastical rings is shown by a passage
in a rare fourteenth-century manuscript written in Italy. Here we are
informed that the topaz was the most honorable of stones “above all
other stones,” and that for this reason the great prelates wore it on
their fingers.[449]
The green variety of tourmaline found in Brazil, and often called
“Brazilian emerald,” was for a long time and is now used quite freely
in Brazil as a setting of episcopal rings.[450] While this is a
departure from the general usage of selecting a blue stone, preferably
sapphire, for this purpose, it nevertheless finds a parallel in the
employment of emeralds for bishops’ rings in quite ancient times, as is
the case with one of the earliest of these rings, that described, or
we should rather say proposed, in the letter of St. Avitus, Bishop of
Vienne in France.
When a prelate has been raised to the rank of cardinal, he has to
resign any ring he may have been entitled to wear previously, and
awaits the bestowal of the special cardinal’s ring by the pope. It
is conferred by the pope personally at the consistory wherein he
assigns a title to the newly-chosen cardinal. This ring is made by a
pontifical jeweller; it is of gold, with a sapphire in the bezel and,
on the inside, the arms of the Sovereign Pontiff. Withal it is rather
inexpensive, the average cost having been put at about $32, although
each cardinal is obliged to pay into the Congregation of the Propaganda
the sum of $642 (3,210 francs) as a “ring tax.” This payment, however,
gives him the valuable right of bequeathing his property as he pleases
by testament; otherwise everything would go to the Church.[451]
As in many portraits of cardinals and high church dignitaries they
are depicted as wearing two or more rings, it has been erroneously
conjectured that each ring represented a separate benefice, there being
thus as many rings as benefices. The ceremonial regulations, however,
clearly indicate that the wearing of many rings is simply a matter of
taste, all except that on the annular finger of the right hand being
purely ornamental.[452]
A ring on the fourth finger of the right hand is shown in Carlo
Maratta’s portrait of Pope Clement IX (1667–1670), given to the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, by Archer M. Huntington, Esq.,
in 1891. The ring bears no design, the setting being a large, square,
beveled stone. The beard and mustache of the pontiff are of the type
familiar to us in portraits of Cardinal Richelieu, who died in 1642.
A splendid example of the cardinal’s ring was recently made for
Cardinal Farley. It is set with an exceptionally large and fine
sapphire, of rounded oval form and an inch in length; the color is rich
and deep; the stone weighs 18½ carats and is a Cinghalese sapphire. A
bordering consisting of twenty-eight diamonds surrounds the central
stone and serves to render more strikingly beautiful the rich blue of
the sapphire, often called the “cardinal’s stone” because it is the one
used for cardinal’s rings. This is noteworthy, as red is pre-eminently
the cardinal’s color, as is shown in his robes, hat, etc.; hence we
might rather expect that the ruddy ruby would have the preference.
However, the fact that the sapphire denotes chastity and celestial
purity has caused this stone to be chosen for the adornment of the
rings worn by those who, from their exalted ecclesiastical rank, are
more especially called upon to set a high example to the priesthood.
The shank of Cardinal Farley’s ring is one of the most beautiful
examples of American goldsmithing in existence. The chasing of the
circlet shows on one side the ample facade and the lofty spires of St.
Patrick’s Cathedral in New York, and on the other side emblems of the
cardinalate. It was the gift of a priest who has known the Cardinal for
many years.[453]
When the Right Rev. David H. Greer was consecrated Bishop of New York,
some of his friends presented him with a very handsome amethyst signet,
but unfortunately this tribute was stolen from his home by burglars,
two or three years ago. When necessity arises of making an official
signature he uses a steel impression stamp of the seal of the diocese.
He has a facsimile impression stamp of the seal which was stolen, but
he seldom or never uses this.[454]
The amethyst seal of Bishop Greer bore for its motto, “Crux Mihi Grata
Quies” (The Cross is for me a grateful rest). This is the motto of Mrs.
Greer’s family. On the shield is the monogram of the bishop’s initials,
D. H. G.; above are two keys in saltire; on the lower part of the
shield just beneath the monogram, is the coat-of-arms of New Amsterdam;
as crest is an episcopal mitre. This was not, however, a seal ring.