In the case of this wolf’s tooth, it is a magical charm. The biblical phrase ‘CONSUMMATUM + EST’ are the last words Christ spoke on the Cross, and were used as a charm to calm storms.Īs this ring is large, it is probably it belonged to a man, and as storms would endanger the wearer only when at sea, it has been suggested that a travelling merchant who undertook many sea voyages might be a possible candidate for ownership. The magical charm: ‘BURO + BERTO + BERNETO’ is to protect against toothache the tooth set in the bezel may well have been expected to contribute to the prophylactic power of the words. Horn was popular during the 19th century, however in the 12th-14th centuries, teeth were used from animals and set in rings, as can be seen below from the ring from c.1200-c.1300. Dating back to ancient times, teeth, tusk and other elements could be carved, polished and placed in a jewel. Teeth are a common element in sentimental jewels, however, not the human kind. For the deceased, there involved no desecration of the remains of the body, which was unorthodox and in some cases sacrilegious. Hair was sentimental for the living it could regrow and it was a cheap material. Using bone as an element in a mourning jewel is highly unusual, as are any elements of the body that are not hair. Courtesy V&A.Ī clear divide between the ecclesiastical and the personal happens when one can see the reverse of the bezel. Gold signet ring, with a circular bezel engraved with a skull surrounded by the name ‘EDWARDxCOPE’, with behind a fragment of bone, presumably a talisman or relic. The skull and crossbones during this time would reflect a personal statement of living, as this is what Edward would have faced in terms of his time on earth death is an eventuality. Being a personal statement means that we need to do more research into Edward Cope’s life before any assumptions can be made about his ecclesiastical beliefs, however, it does align to a time during the c.1600-50 period when the shift in thought in Anglican society had moved into a second/third generation of being in the Protestant mindset. ![]() This is a personal statement of Edward Cope, as the skull perfectly aligns with the sentiment of ‘memento mori’, or ‘remember that you will die’. Not only does this signet ring feature bone underneath its bezel, it also has the important marking of ‘EDWARDxCOPE’ as the reversed inscription above and below the skull motif. ![]() Presenting the elements of the body in ecclesiastical jewellery was common, yet the ring that is displayed today from the V&A collection has a basis in this thought, yet is an evolution of its own modernism. A rising merchant/middling class that had access to new wealth, new educational systems and the potential to be socially mobile challenged what it was to be alive and the values that a good life and a good family could live within. Mourning jewellery can find its inception to this period, as the questioning of ecclesiastical rites and power promoted a new vision of humanism. ![]() Since Martin Luther proposed a discussion in his Ninety-Five Thesis, or the “Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences” on October 31st, 1517, the focus of what the importance of life and judgement under god came into discussion. Courtesy V&A.Ĭonnecting the body to death and the physical elements of the body that are relevant to display within the context of death are very specific to the Protestant and Catholic schism.
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