Preview
Creation Date
6th–7th century
Geography
Eastern Mediterranean
Culture
Byzantine
Medium
Iron
Credit Line
Bequest of David P. Harris ('46), 2020
Accession Number
2020.104
Provenance
Purchased by David P. Harris from Julia Schottlander (Tetragon) in London on October 24, 1992.
Condition
The iron appears to be rusted. There are a few dents in the metalwork around the band of the ring, and also around the seal itself. The lettering and border seems uneven in terms of width and perfection, and is weathered from time. No coloring besides base iron.
Amanda Johnstone (’24), October 2023
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings
The block monogram is made of the following Greek letters: ΣΤΕΦΑΝΟΥ ([ring] of Stephen). For comparable monograms, see Walter Otto Fink, “Das byzantinische Monogramm,” (PhD diss, University of Vienna, 1971), p. 183, nos. 305–306; and a tenth or eleventh-century seal Dumbarton Oaks, BZS.1958.106.4629.
Description
This ring has a large band with a flat bezel. The band appears to be larger in comparison to any of my fingers; therefore it was likely not made for feminine hands. The seal itself is flat and oval-shaped. Both the band and the rounded seal are uneven and imperfect, littered with dents and chips, as well as visible corrosion. The band is uneven to the point of varying thickness. The ring is colorless, with an exception to specks of orange from rusted iron corrosion embedded in the Greek lettering. The seal itself has jagged Greek lettering, with the name “Stephen” affirming our hypothesis that the ring was owned by an individual with masculine hands. Around the lettering is an engraved oval border for decoration.
Some inferences to be made stem from the ring being a block monogram. Perhaps this ring, especially when taken into account of the etchings in the seal, was used as a sort of stamp. Possibly to stamp political papers or forms, or perhaps simply as a sign of pride in a noble family. Because the name is not one of a common last name and family names weren’t commonplace, we can assume that Stephen was the name of the ring bearer, perhaps one that was so well known that the last name was not needed in the inscription.
Amanda Johnstone (’24)
Purchase Receipt and Supporting Documents