There are rings that speak of love, and then there are rings that seem to carry the whole history of it. Two hands reach toward one another and cradle a heart beneath a crown, a tiny declaration of faith, loyalty and love made perhaps a century before the familiar Claddagh ring took its standardized form. This is the older language of the fede ring, from the Italian ‘mani in Fede’, “hands in faith,” a symbol exchanged between lovers for centuries. Worn smooth by generations and still glowing with much of its original gilding, this little ring has survived with its message wonderfully intact.

Probably Scottish and handcrafted in the late 16th or early 17th century, likely between 1600 and 1650, this rare fede ring is made in silver with a gold gilt surface. Its sculptural bezel brings together the three elements that would later become synonymous with the Claddagh: two hands, a heart and a crown. Early Scottish examples of hands holding a heart are known from this period, while British archaeological finds demonstrate the use of silver gilt, clasped hands and crowned motifs in fede rings well before the 18th century. The ring measures 20.2 mm north to south at the face, tapering to a 4.1 mm band at the back. It is a size 10 and weighs 5.7 grams. The surface shows the wonderful softness and wear expected of a ring that may be four centuries old, with much of the original gilding remaining.

Long before the Claddagh became an Irish icon, its symbols belonged to a much older European tradition of love rings. Hands for friendship and fidelity. A heart for love. A crown for loyalty. Four hundred years later, remarkably, we still understand exactly what it means.

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Item ID: RG0225059V