Pearl Wear & Tear

[Valeria101]

I don't know about you, but I found this little picture down the link below utterly remarkable. It is a ring with many small gems including a round, white natural pearl. The ring belonged to Elizabeth I and is reputed to have been worn. Obviously, time has past over it on top of whatever wear. The pearl seems to have endured as well as the table cut diamonds and rubies nearby...

Take a look: HERE

The page where it comes from is: THIS

Of course, there are many examples of royal jewelry with pearls, but few 'wearable' examples with fairly detailed pictures online

[Zeide Erskine]

Hi Ana,

I wonder why the description calls this a "mother of pearl," diamond and ruby ring. It looks like a pearl (probably a freshwater half pearl) to me not like mother of pearl. On second thought, they may be referring to the shank. It looks like a mother of pearl shank with a thin gold rim into which the stones have been set.

Zeide

[Valeria101]

On second thought, they may be referring to the shank. It looks like a mother of pearl shank with a thin gold rim into which the stones have been set.

Zeide

Yeah... I went through the same questioning the ring's description. The little pearl looks like it might be the push button that opens the ring. Too bad that the picture showing it open in David Starkey's hand is not very clear.

[Satine De La Courcel]

I love that ring. Inever noticed the mother of pearl on the shank before! teh only thing I can think of is that he pearls was a mabe and they considered it part of the Mother of pearl shell at that point in history... Just a thought.. thehagain Tomaotes were "poisonous then too!

[Zeide Erskine]

Hi Ash,

It may have been her favorite, in Lizzy's day alchemists were still reigning supreme and they did make arsenic or antimon and gold amalgamates that could slowly but surely kill you. Mother of pearl was safe. As a result, you find quite a few royal rings with inner shanks made of mother of pearl in royal collections although most of the old pieces had solid gold shanks put in their place later.

Zeide

[Taylor]

I just ordered for my Christmas the little natural pearl ring from the same site as the shirt studs you noticed, Ash. It looks very much like the photos with the 2 pearls next to the pinkie and middle fingers very worn down (almost gone) but otherwise intact. They claimed this ring was 1860 and probably heavily worn unlike QEI's which is probably in a museum. Let's see a PPB do that. I like looking at the things you find, especially the old things, although most are way out of my range.

[Satine De La Courcel]

It may have been her favorite, in Lizzy's day alchemists were still reigning supreme and they did make arsenic or antimon and gold amalgamates that could slowly but surely kill you. Mother of pearl was safe. As a result, you find quite a few royal rings with inner shanks made of mother of pearl in royal collections although most of the old pieces had solid gold shanks put in their place later.

Zeide[/QUOTE]

Hi Zeide,

Wonderful theories weren't they and pearls could cure stomach ailments as well! Sometimes blindness too!!