"Ancient or Medieval " thumbrings on ebay
Occasionally, on a whim, I would search Ebay for random archery items. Thus far, I've seen around ten silver or bronze thumbrings claiming to be from 4-7 Centuries AD, mostly from the Balkans.
My question is, how does one tell if these are authentic... though they're not expensive, they're not particularly cheap either.
I've looked up several examples of museum pieces and they all seem resemble the ebay ones very closely. I'm not referring to the round Chinese rings in case anyone is wondering... I'm from Taiwan and see those on the streets by the thousands.
any info welcomed!
My question is, how does one tell if these are authentic... though they're not expensive, they're not particularly cheap either.
I've looked up several examples of museum pieces and they all seem resemble the ebay ones very closely. I'm not referring to the round Chinese rings in case anyone is wondering... I'm from Taiwan and see those on the streets by the thousands.
any info welcomed!
Despite what the sellers say, most of the bronze rings on eBay from the Balkans are probably early Ottoman. If you are very lucky there might be some late Byzantine ones included. (Late 1300s to 1600s for Ottoman and 700-1200s for Byzantine.)
I have seen some recently that have been enhanced with scratched on designs in what the fakers thought were Roman patterns. Most of the rings I have seen look to be genuinely excavated items, probably found with metal detectors. Because they are not scientifically excavated they have no historical significance, but they do have technical interest.
Before 1492, silver was very valuable and I don't think that silver rings with scratched on decorations are likely to be early.
I have been able to compare some of these rings with ones that originated out of old collections. I have concluded that many of them are in the Turkish style, but of the Ottoman rather than the Seljuk period. There is a lot of variation in the shapes.
There is one class of lipped rings with the lips pointing straight up instead of out. In these the lips are small and the surface is decorated with small cast hemispheres to form patterns. Sometimes they have Byzantine designs on the surface of the lips. these rings may have been used with a leather tab, but I am not sure which of the possible configurations they might have had.
Some rings show traces of vitrified enamel on their surfaces. No patterns are left because of long burial times.
I have seen some recently that have been enhanced with scratched on designs in what the fakers thought were Roman patterns. Most of the rings I have seen look to be genuinely excavated items, probably found with metal detectors. Because they are not scientifically excavated they have no historical significance, but they do have technical interest.
Before 1492, silver was very valuable and I don't think that silver rings with scratched on decorations are likely to be early.
I have been able to compare some of these rings with ones that originated out of old collections. I have concluded that many of them are in the Turkish style, but of the Ottoman rather than the Seljuk period. There is a lot of variation in the shapes.
There is one class of lipped rings with the lips pointing straight up instead of out. In these the lips are small and the surface is decorated with small cast hemispheres to form patterns. Sometimes they have Byzantine designs on the surface of the lips. these rings may have been used with a leather tab, but I am not sure which of the possible configurations they might have had.
Some rings show traces of vitrified enamel on their surfaces. No patterns are left because of long burial times.
What would be the approximate date of the oldest thumb ring found in archaeological digs in the Scythia to Balkan area and/or further west? I remember reading an article containing pictures of thumb rings supposedly found in the northern extremes of the Roman Empire in Britain. I was sceptical at the time and I still am.
The earliest references I have seen were to possibly seventh century rings, but I have had trouble finding the original sources. Perhaps Bulgarian members might have access to archaeological reports.
Rings start to be mentioned obliquely in the early 600s, but the quote in Maurice has more than one interpretation.
The British one I saw was not a thumb ring. It was much to big.
Rings start to be mentioned obliquely in the early 600s, but the quote in Maurice has more than one interpretation.
The British one I saw was not a thumb ring. It was much to big.
I was sure there were no finds from the Hunnic period and 7thC finds fits in with what I've read. The article about the 4th/5thC Roman finds was on the internet, the address is long since forgotten but I do remember the pictures showed a number of rings supposedly of Roman origin. I was sceptical because I'd not read of any finds from that period in the places one would expect, namely those inhabited by horse archer peoples.