The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-31
ANCIENT HISTORY
 OF FINGER RING This Ornament Is Perennially
 In Fashion WORN BY THE ANClfNTS We Owe Our Finest Examples of An cient Seal Rings to the Egyptians, Who Were Much Given To
 Their Wearing.
WORN BY THE ANClfNTS
prom the Providence Journal.

Fashions in JeWelry may come and go, but whatever other forms may not be in style, finger rings are perennially fashion able and perennially worn.
 The ancient BabylonianS wore rings and there is in the British Museum today a letter written on a tile from a certain high born dame in which she thanks her sweetheart for finding her dog and for sending her ring, which she ayers, fits her to perfection. The Persians, accord ing to historians, did not wear any rings of gold. their religion forbidding them to have about them any article of that metal during their religious devotions. As they were accustomed to spend much time at prayer it would have been too much trouble to remove their rings so frequently.
 The Egyptians were much given to wearing rings, and 1t Is to them we owe our finest examples of ancient seal rings. Among the Greeks of Homer's time there seems to be no mention made of rings, though the Maceconians affected rings of iron pretending to despise those of gold and the later osreeks carried their passion for adorning their fingers to such lengths that the phrase 'golden-handed was synonymous with the modern expres- sion trolling in wealth." From the Sa- pines the Romans adopted the custom Of ring wearing and at first like those or the Lacedonians, they were made or iron, used for seals, and regarded rather as articles of utility than of luxury. Every free-born Roman had the privi- leee of wearing a ring, and later, as the Romans came more and more under the influence of the Greeks, they, too, fairly loaded their hands with jewelry, until 1t was no uncommon thing Tor gentleman of wealth and leisure to wear 60 rings at one time.
 Among many ancient peoples the ring was regarded as a symbol of authority, and an almost indispensable article or dress since it contained it's wearers sg- net, and even derived its name from 0 root meaning ito impress seal. By bestowing upon Joseph his signet ring, Pharaoh invested him with kingly au- thority, and Alexander the Great, in giv- Ing his ring to Perdccas, thereoy nomi- hated him his successor Solomons seal was engraved with the mystic term ''shemhamphorasch, ana through the magic power of this phrase he was enabled to build the temple. Every morning, according to the legend, he was carried up into heaven, where he learned the secrets of the universe and was thus daily endowed woth fresh wisdom Finally the genius of the ring persuaded the King to grant him ms liberty if only for a time. and as result regned for three years in the stead of Solomon, who meanwhile wan dered rather disconsolately about the face of the earth.
 According to Arabian tradition the ring was stolen by Jewess, who cast 1t into the sea- Solomon, in despair at thus losing his seal, and with his powers or diyination, lasted 40 days and 40 nights, of WI npriOd returned to him In a huge fish, caught and presented to his lord by loyal nsher- man.
 This story of ring, cast into the sea and returned in fish, finds reproducton in a thousand tales. The custom of cast ing a ring into the sea, a ceremony nerformed at the succession of each doge of Venice, typified the wedding of Venice to the Adriatc Upon one occasion, when the ring was found in the body of a earn the people mourned as at national disaster, for they believed tnelr city doomed to certain destruction.
 During the fifteenth and sixteenth cen turies when the gentle art of poisoning was so greatly in vogue, that arch pois- oner, Catherine de Medici, introduced into France together with poisoned gloves. rings in which poison was concealed, and 1t Is said these rings attained great  to rid themselves of troublesome or rich friends or relatives. Catherine herself Is said to have made use of her rings which she had brought from Italy, where the process of ring poisoning originated Many hapless courtier, stopping to Kiss the hand of the Queen, received in his mouth the poison which the ring con- cealed and a spring released
 Other rings popular during the same biased by the king, protected their wearer from cramps "gemmef' rings, made by joining the two hoops together, period were "cramp' rings which being which were much used as betrothal rings and s.poese' rings, so called because or +ba rbvmes engraved thereon. Of such one Gratiano speaks in ''The Merchant of yenlce," when he refers to
 A paltry ring
 That she did give me, whose posy was For all the world like cutters poetry Upon a knife, Hove me and leave me
 not"
 Then there were thumb rings, con corning which Falstaff in Henry X1' makes boast that in his youth he was slender enough to creep into any alder mans thumb ring" religious" or para dise' rings engraved to represent DOT tions of church history, mourning rings and decade rings. having 10 pro- 1ectlons around the hoop which were used for repeating ayes.
 To wedding rings there has been of- ten attached a value even unto death. In testamentary document made by Mary Queen of Scots shortly before the birth of her son, when the queen was in great fear of death, she bequeathed among other things her wedding ring
 a1 ko "A king. who gave it to me-" Mary did not die as she had feared, and this same ring was afterwards used a second time at her secret marriage to Darnley in Rizzo's chamber at Stirling.
 One of the smallest wedding rings of which we have record was that fitted n the finger of Mary. daughter of Henry VIII. who, at the age of years, was solemnly welded amid much pomp and snlendor to Francis I. of France who had just attained the dignity of six months. Attending the little bride were her father and mother, Henry and Cath crime of Aragon and Marie of France, mother of the bridegroom. The bride groom himself was not present at the , ceremony. but his place was taken by Admiral Bonnivet. who acted as proxy and placed upon the finger Of the little princess tiny wedding ring, set with a magnificent dianond Cardinal Wolsey performed the ceremony, at which the whole court was present.
 Though gold is the metal generally ac-