1972.0060 Ring (finger), view 1
  • 1972.0060 Ring (finger), view 1
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Ring (finger) (Mourning ring)

  • Category:

    Jewelry

  • Creator (Role):

    Jeremiah Dummer (Maker)

  • Place of Origin:

    Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, New England, United States, North America

  • Date:

    1693

  • Materials:

    Gold; Enamel

  • Museum Object Number:

    1972.0060


  • Complete Details



Object Number

1972.0060

Object Name

Ring (finger) (Mourning ring)

Category

Jewelry

Credit Line/Donor

Gift of Mrs. George L. Batchelder

Creator (Role)

Jeremiah Dummer (Maker)
9/14/1645-5/25/1718
See extensive biographical details and list of surviving objects in Patricia Kane, Colonial Massachusetts Silversmiths and Jewelers, New Haven: Yale University Art Gallery, 1998, 385-397.

Place of Origin

Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, New England, United States, North America

Date

1693

Mark or Signature or Inscription or Label

1. Mark; Ring, interior; "ID" stamped in a rectangle
2. Inscription; Ring, interior; "Iames LLoyd . Obyt. 21.Aug.\t..1693" engraved

Subjects

Mourning imagery

Materials

Gold; Enamel

Dimensions (inches)

0.75 (Diam)

Dimensions (centimeters)

1.91 (Diam)

Object Description

Web - 10/06/2022

A wreath-like diaper pattern accented in black enamel ornaments the rounded exterior of this gold ring. It was created as part of the funeral customs to honor James Lloyd of Boston who died on August 21, 1693. Jewelers in colonial America who made mourning rings often followed the British regulation of including their mark on the work, which today helps establish its workshop origin. For this ring Lloyd's family commissioned the first of the generation of Boston-trained gold/silversmiths, Jeremiah Dummer.

Bibliography and Bibliographic Notes

[Book] Quimby, Ian M. G. 1995 American Silver at Winterthur.
Published: p. 93, no. 50
[Book] Fairbanks, Jonathan L. & Trent, Robert F. 1982 New England Begins: The Seventeenth Century. II. 100-360.
Published: v.2, pp.313, 315, cat. no. 322
[Book] DeLorme, Maureen. 2004 Mourning Art & Jewelry. 256 p.
Earliest piece of mourning jewelry by an American-born and trained jeweler, p. 65
[Book] Fales, Martha Gandy. 1995 Jewelry in America, 1600-1800.
Published: p. 23, plate 5