Gold ring found by metal detectorist could fetch up to £8,000 at auction
A medieval gold ring unearthed by a metal detectorist in a field he had visited many times before has been estimated to fetch up to £8,000 when it is sold at auction.
Richard Girling, 63, said the jewellery was 'beautiful' and described it as 'one of my best artefact finds'.
The tree surgeon, of Ickburgh in Norfolk, made the find at a site in Merton – around 20 minutes' drive from his home – in March last year.
Mr Girling said: 'I began metal detecting when I was 16 years old as as a child. I was fascinated by gold and silver shops and anything that glistened such as rocks and crystals.
'Then I had a C-scope (a type of metal detector), now I have a Deus 2.
'On the day I found the ring, the ground was very wet, and I was aching from walking all day around the field that I have visited many times.
'I got a signal in one patch of the field; the soil was very black, maybe where a pond used to be, so I dug down three inches and found a gold ring – I didn't do the dance like some people do but wow, I was very pleased with the ring, it was beautiful.'
The gold posy ring, thought to date from the 13th or 14th Century, is to be auctioned at Noonans Mayfair in London on Wednesday March 26.
It has a pre-sale estimate of £6,000-8,000.
'This is one of my best artefact finds,' Mr Girling said.
'I have found coins in the past, and it is nice to have something in your hand that hasn't been touched for hundreds of years and imagine what were the people like, why were they there…'
Laura Smith, jewellery expert at Noonans, said: ' Romance and jewellery have always been closely entwined and, during the medieval period, it became popular to inscribe a short love message or 'posy' on a gold ring to be given to your beloved.
'The intimacy is enhanced by the fact the message is worn right next to the skin and is really just for the wearer to behold.'
She said the ring is inscribed on the exterior in a mixture of Roman and Lombardic forms, reading: '+IO.VVS.AIM.PAR.FEI'.
This translates from Medieval French as 'I love you by faith' or 'I love you faithfully'.
Ms Smith said: 'Merton Hall was built in 1613 on the site of a house which had been in possession of the de Grey/de Gray family since the mid 14th century, and prior to that of their ancestors in the female line, the Baynards, to whom the property was granted at the time of William the Conqueror.
'This ring is in very fine condition, described by the British Museum in the portable antiquities scheme report as 'unworn, with crisp arrises'.'
The ring has been disclaimed as treasure, and Mr Girling will share the proceeds of the sale with the landowner.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Putin's secret daughter, 22, ‘working in anti-war art galleries in Paris' after ‘ditching tyrant's name'
She vanished from Russian social media shortly before the start of the war TAKE VLAD Putin's secret daughter, 22, 'working in anti-war art galleries in Paris' after 'ditching tyrant's name' Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) VLADIMIR Putin's alleged secret daughter is reportedly working at two Parisian art galleries that showcase anti-Kremlin and anti-war exhibitions. Elizaveta Krivonogikh, 22 – also known as Luiza Rozova and now Elizaveta Rudnova – is said to be rubbing shoulders with Russian dissidents and Ukrainian artists in the French capital. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 6 Elizaveta Krivonogikh, also known as Elizaveta Rudnova, is said to be Vladimir Putin's secret daughter Credit: East2West 6 The 22-year-old is reportedly working at two art galleries in Paris Credit: Social media 6 She is said to be Putin's offspring with his former long-term lover Svetlana Krivonogikh Credit: Elizaveta Krivonogikh 6 One of the galleries is said to be Espace Albatros in the neighbourhood of Montreuil Credit: Google Maps Reports say she is working at L Galerie in Belleville and Espace Albatros in Montreuil, despite being the daughter of a regime responsible for the war they oppose. She also reportedly dropped the Putin-linked name and adopted one tied to Oleg Rudnov, a late Vlad ally - in an apparent attempt to mask her ties to the Kremlin tyrant. Her role as gallery manager includes helping organise shows and make videos, according to outlet Meduza. But it has seemed to spark fury among exiled Russians and Ukrainians. Artist Nastya Rodionova, who fled Russia in 2022, said she couldn't stay silent. In a Facebook post, she wrote: 'It's important to say that I believe in the presumption of innocence and that children are not responsible for the crimes of their parents. 'But with the war reaching its heights it is inadmissible to allow a person who comes from a family of beneficiaries of [Putin's] regime to come into confrontation with the victims of that regime. 'We need to know who we are working with and decide whether we are ready for that. My personal answer in this case is no.' Gallery director Dmitry Dolinsky, meanwhile, defended Rudnova's role. Putin warns Trump he 'will have to respond' to Ukraine's daring drone attack in hour-long phone call with president 'She looks like Putin but so do 100,000 other people. I haven't seen a DNA test.' Some insiders back her, calling her a 'cultured person' and 'excellent worker'. But Rodionova hit back, warning that victims of the war shouldn't be forced to share space with anyone tied to the regime – alleged daughter or not. Rudnova's mother, Svetlana Krivonogikh, was sanctioned by the UK in 2023 and linked to Putin's inner circle by independent Russian media. She reportedly owns property worth $100million and was outed as Putin's former mistress by the Proekt investigative team. Elizaveta vanished from Russian social media shortly before the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. She once flaunted a lavish lifestyle on Instagram, posting photos in designer clothes, sipping champagne, and DJing under the name Luiza Rozova. Ukrainian TV later claimed she was living in Paris with a passport under the name Rudnova, allegedly ditching the patronymic Vladimirovna, which would confirm her father's name as Vladimir. 6 Elizaveta would often flaunt her wealth with social media posts Credit: East2West 6 She also allegedly ditched her tyrant dad's surname Credit: East2West Born in March 2003, Elizaveta has never publicly confirmed a link to the Russian tyrant. The Kremlin has never confirmed her existence either. But the timing of her birth, her resemblance to Putin, and her mother's major financial rise have fuelled years of speculation. Kremlin critics say she is part of the hidden empire Putin has built for his inner circle and family. Officially, Putin only acknowledges two daughters, Maria and Katerina, from his marriage to Lyudmila Putina, whom he divorced in 2014. But it's long been rumoured he has more children — including two sons with former gymnast Alina Kabaeva.
Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
'I found out I'm related to Will Young after watching his TV show'
The Pop Idol winner discovered on this week's episode of BBC1's Who Do You Think You Are? that he is related to King Edward I and William the Conquerer - so Mirror man Matt decided to dig into his ancestors too As if Will Young didn't already have reason to be smug, the Pop Idol and two-time Brit Award winner now has something else he can boast about - he's related to royalty. Specifically, King Edward I, his 20-times great-grandfather. Oh, and William the Conquerer too. The singer found out about his kingly lineage filming this week's episode of BBC1 's Who Do You Think You Are? And he's not the only celebrity who, besides being blessed with success, can also add royal blood to their claims to fame. Josh Widdecombe is another, having learned he's also directly descended from Edward I. Before him there was Danny Dyer, who discovered his ancestors include King Edward III, William the Conquerer and French king Louis IX. Then there's Matthew Pinsent – four-time Olympic gold medallist and, it turns out, also related to Edward I, William the Conqueror and one of Henry VIII's wives. What is it about being a celebrity, I wondered, that makes you more likely to have royal relatives? Knowing Will was going to be the latest to fill me with jealousy, I set out to find out if mere mortals like me had any remotely interesting ancestors. In my case, the chances of even finding anyone slightly aristocratic in my family tree seemed pretty bleak. Will was already born with a silver spoon in his mouth, a boarding school boy whose dad was a company director and whose grandad was an RAF flight lieutenant. Most of the relatives I knew about, on the other hand, were proud yet poor Nottinghamshire coal miners and their wives. Still, I set up an account on FindMyPast and added the names of the relatives I knew about over the last 150 years. As the site suggested potential matches based on birth, marriage, baptism and census records, I gradually worked my way back around 12 generations to the mid-1600s. Alas, what I discovered only confirmed my suspicions. My family were paupers, not princes – grafters who toiled for centuries in coal mines, stables, forges and along canals. My great-grandfather, I discovered, was a coal miner loader who had worked his way up to coal hewer - hacking coal from the mine bed by hand, hundreds of metres underground - just like his father and grandfather before him. Earlier still were nailmakers, boatmen, stonemasons and stablemen. Almost all lived and died in Derbyshire, Yorkshire or Lancashire. We were clearly the servants, not the masters. I had more in common with Baldrick than Blackadder. But just as I was about to give up, I stumbled on something unexpected. In the late 1500s, Derbyshire man William Gilbert, my 13th great-grandfather, married Anne Clere - and into a well-known family. The Cleres, it turned out, were an ancient family from Norfolk whose patriarch, Sir Robert Clere, was the High Sheriff of Norfolk and known for his great wealth. Anne's father, Sir Edward Clere, was an MP, but apparently not a very articulate one when speaking in the House of Commons. One diarist wrote how he made '"a staggering [stumbling] speech… I could not understand what reason he made.' He was knighted in 1578 after having Queen Elizabeth I stay over at his home in Thetford, Norfolk, when he entertained her with a theatrical performance and jousting. Fascinated that my family was at least good friends with royalty, I kept digging. Edward's father was Sir John Clere, an MP and naval commander who drowned in August 1557 when his fleet tried to conquer the Orkney Islands, but was beaten back to sea by 3,000 angry islanders. But it was her mother, Alice Boleyn, my 14th great-grandmother, whose name jumped out at me. Sure enough, as I followed the tree, her niece was none other than Anne Boleyn, Queen of England until she was beheaded in 1533 by Henry VIII - and the mother of Queen Elizabeth I. I was astounded - that makes me Elizabeth I's first cousin, 16 times removed. On the other side of the Clere family, however, things were taking a more sinister - but no less fascinating - turn. Sir John Clere's wife, Anne Tyrell, also had royal connections, it turned out, but ones that probably changed the line of succession forever. On her father's side, her grandfather was Sir James Tyrell, a trusted servant of Richard III, who allegedly confessed to the murders of the Princes in the Tower under Richard's orders. James is also portrayed in Shakespeare's Richard III. I was astounded - I studied the play at school and had no idea I was reading about my 17th great-grandfather. Treason and treachery, it seems, ran in the family. His father William was beheaded on Tower Hill in 1462 for plotting against King Edward IV. William's father, Sir John Tyrell of Heron, was High Sheriff of Essex and Hertfordshire and knight of Essex, and three times Speaker of the House of Commons. That my 19th great-grandfather basically once ruled Essex is something I won't be letting people forget in Stansted, where I now live. But it was also through Anne Tyrell's mother's side that I found something even more astonishing. As I followed her line, the names began to get more and more aristocratic, through the Willoughbys, De Welles, Greystokes and Longsprees, until I found…. My 26th great-grandfather, King Henry II. His father was Geoffrey Plantagenet of Anjou and his grandfather, King Henry I. And Henry's father? No other than William the Conquerer - my 29th great-grandfather. And perhaps even more bizarrely, that would make Will Young my 9th cousin, 9 times removed. I'll be inviting him round for tea next week. Genealogists will tell me to calm down - apparently there are about five million people who are descended from William the Conquerer. Establishing myself as the true heir to the British throne could certainly be tricky. But just being as special as Will, Danny Dyer and Matthew Pinsent is enough for me. And not bad for the son of Nottinghamshire nailmakers, stablemen and coal miners. How to trace your family tree on Findmypast: Register for a free Findmypast account and create your tree. Add your own information, then details about your parents, grandparents and other relatives that you know. You don't need every detail such as date or place of birth, but the more you have the better. Findmypast then searches its records and provides hints about your ancestors, helping you expand your tree. To access the records you'll need to pay a subscription. Most of the records go back to the 1700s, but family trees created by other people can help you trace back even further. Use the internet to search some of the key names - you might find more clues and other historical connections.
Belfast Telegraph
5 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Travel Review: Once Provence casts its spell, you might never want to leave
Experience the beautiful views and places that have inspired creativity from Picasso, Cézanne and Van Gogh, and boasts lavender fields like nowhere else on earth Deep in the heart of Provence, near the Roman town of Aix, lies one of the art world's most remarkable and unexpected destinations. Château La Coste, a 200-hectare estate of vines and olive groves, hosts an extraordinary collection of contemporary works by global luminaries: Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Ai Weiwei, Dublin-born Sean Scully, Louise Bourgeois and even Bob Dylan, Michael Stipe of R.E.M. and Yoko Ono. You might assume this visionary project sprang from the mind of an art lover from Paris, Rome or New York. In fact, its roots are closer to home. Mara McKillen, the heart and soul of Château La Coste, was born in Belfast. Together with her brother, hotelier and developer Paddy McKillen and their team, she has spent two decades transforming this traditional farmland into a celebrated haven for art, wine and architecture.
