Rings for the finger

The modern methods of ring manufacture in the United States are far different from those of the past, due to an endeavor to keep pace with the growth of the country and with an increase in production. Owing to the introduction of modern systems, great quantities of an article can now be sold, which, though not preserving the character of the finest handiwork, yet cost so much less to produce that they can now be offered at greatly reduced prices.

In the manufacture of the modern ring, there is first prepared a design, or even a model. The initial process consists in cutting this object exactly as it will appear when it is finished,—or such parts of it as are made by measure,—on what is known as a “hub” made of soft steel. When the design is finally completed, it is hardened by heating and then by dipping into water, oil or other solution. When the metal hub has been hardened, it is forced into a mass of soft steel by great pressure, usually hydraulic, producing a die, as it is termed, on which all the ornamentation is the reverse of that on the desired object. This die is then hardened.

The die is placed on the stand of the drop press, the upperweight strikes it and forces the metal into it; this requires from four or five to seven or eight operations. Each time the metal is struck it is annealed, then restruck and again annealed, until the ring is ready for trimming. This trimming removes all the superfluous metal, and the ring is then in condition for the jeweller to bend it into a complete circle.

In the manufacture of many rings, the metal first receives a special form. The gold plates are blanked and rolled to a definite thickness according to the pattern of the ring desired, the width being controlled by screws attached to the rolls themselves. To obtain the exact width, the measure in which it is placed can be adjusted to cut a strip of metal from a millimeter, or thinner, up to several inches in width. It is slid over a roll and two wheels with sharp edges separate the mass of gold into exactly the desired widths. The gauges are so exact as in one instance to provide 16 variations to a millimeter, approximately ¹/₂₅ of an inch. Another screw gauge is so delicate that it can be adjusted to the four-thousandth of an inch.

Each piece is then put in a cutter exactly the outline of the desired piece, which, for a ring, is usually quite flat. The piece of metal then drops into a cutting box and a number can be struck out successively by simply raising the press and allowing the cutter to come down. The metal is now placed in another roll, which, in the case of the signet ring, rolls the sides thinner than the head. When this process is completed the product is put in a gauge measure which measures the length of the ring from 0.4 to size 13, on Allen’s standard gauge. The ends of the metal are then cut off so that the ring is approximately the desired size, and the ends are annealed or soldered without any further operation.

In most cases when striking a signet-ring, the top is not cut out entirely. The gold backing of the stone is left, and the head of the ring is struck with a concave space so that when the two sides are brought down the space will remain flat. For transparent stones, the top is cut out of the setting entirely. When the rings are finally completed they are cleaned by what is known as a stripping wheel, the reverse of a plating wheel, which removes all the fire-markings, and all the other impurities that exist, leaving the metal clean.

The rings are then polished by rapidly revolving wheels of hair,—at times, of other materials. After this, the stones are set. If the rings need engraving, they are then passed to an engraver and are finally polished, leaving the metal entirely finished.

In former times, and now also, by hand methods one man would frequently make an entire ring. By modern methods, the ring passes through the hands of a number of workers: first, the blank-maker, then in succession the man who operates the drop press, the jeweller, the stone setter, the engraver, and finally, the polisher.

As to the statistics of ring-making, with the great demand throughout the United States a single factory has produced 3,000,000 rings a year, some selling for less than $1.00 each, and on up to $5.00 and $10.00 each; very occasionally for higher prices, up to $50.00 or $60.00. Recently to fill an order for a chain of popular shops, this factory turned out 2,000,000 rings to be sold at ten cents apiece. In the region of Providence, Rhode Island, and the nearby Attleboro, Mass., the total value of the annual ring output, which gives employment to some two thousand persons, is put at $5,000,000. In a factory of the largest kind, frequently the various parts for making up a ring may be kept in small boxes, because a stamper, in making an intricate ring, is able to produce more in one day than a jeweller can finish in a week. In simple rings, however, the jeweller finishes as many rings as the stamper can produce in a day.

There is no piece of jewellery that is more generally worn nor whose possession causes more joy, than a finger ring. And the proper fitting of a ring for comfort in wearing it, or to prevent its loss, which frequently would be looked upon almost as a calamity, is something that can be attained by careful adjustment to the proper size. Many fingers taper forward. In other fingers, the knuckle is very large and the third joint much smaller than the knuckle. Where the finger tapers from the joint at the hand to the tip it is frequently difficult to make a ring hold properly. But this can be done by wearing a tiny guard ring. In cases where the finger is much smaller between the third and fourth joint the ring will turn around, which is not only uncomfortable but makes the ornaments fail to show properly. This can be prevented by having the hoop penannular in shape, or by the addition of an internal spring.

To prevent the rubbing together of two rings worn on the same finger, and the resulting attrition, which in the lapse of years sometimes wears down a gold ring until the hoop becomes so thin that it may crack, a simple device has been patented. This is a narrow circlet which may be made of ivory or any other suitable material. It has a thin vertical flange just high enough to interpose between the rings that are to be kept apart, and two horizontal flanges to pass beneath the hoops of the rings.

To protect two rings from rubbing against each other, an exceedingly narrow gold circlet is worn between them. Where there is risk that a hard stone in one ring will come in contact with a pearl in the other, or a diamond with any other stone, necessarily softer, one or more very small beads are welded on that part of the hoop nearest to the setting. In cases where a treasured ring has worn almost to the thinness of paper, it is possible to strengthen it by adding gold at either side of the hoop.

The size of the finger is often recorded by what is known as the Allen gauge, a tapering stick numbered from 1 to size 13 in half sizes. To this stick is attached a chain, and pendant to the chain is a series of rings of graduated sizes. When it is decided which ring of the series best fits the finger, it is slipped on the gauge and its size ascertained. If size 6 is a little tight and 6½ a trifle loose, this indicates that 6¼ is the correct size.

In measuring the finger for a ring, by Engelmann’s Ring, Finger and Millimeter Locking Gauge, the ring is set over the outside perpendicular ends of the gauge (see plate). These are then separated to their fullest extent, so that they touch the ring on both sides. The exact size of the ring is thus indicated on the scale over the mark on the movable upper part of the right-hand end.

To measure the size of a finger, the ends should be separated sufficiently to permit the finger to pass through the aperture between them. They are then to be closed so as to touch lightly—not pinch or squeeze—the flesh of the finger. When this has been done the ends are locked, and if the knuckle passes easily through the aperture, the right size has been found. This is recorded on the scale in the same way as in the ring measurement. In measuring the finger of either a child, boy, girl, or woman, who has not a large or high knuckle, a safe rule is to add a ½ ring-size to that which has been indicated by the measurement.

The width of the metal ring-shank is ascertained by placing its lower, centre part between the two inside perpendicular ends, and the exact dimensions will be made apparent on the millimeter scale. Where the shank is tapered, the maximum and minimum widths must be taken, and these must both be stated in ordering a ring.

An unset stone is to be measured in the way just described, maximum and minimum widths being taken; for this purpose also, only the extreme pointed ends are to be used; these dimensions should be correctly stated when the ring is ordered.

To alter a ring to any size, place the lower, centre part of the shank over the scale and estimate the width of metal to be taken off or added, respectively, by the millimeter-lines.

Where the proper measuring devices are not attainable, resource may be had to various simple expedients. For instance, a bit of copper wire can be used; one end is turned so as to form an eye, and through this the other end is drawn until the circle fits the finger; the free end is then twisted to keep it from slipping back. In this way the exact size of a finger can be obtained. It is also possible to have the wire notched so as to indicate the standard numbers of rings, or better still, to have them stamped on a narrow, flat strip of copper or steel with a slot at one end, through which the other end can be passed and turned down when the band has closely encircled the finger. Of course, these simple methods need only be resorted to when the prospective buyer is ordering a ring by mail or messenger, as jewellers are always provided with instruments for taking the exact measurement of the fingers.

A new and practical invention is that of a “display ring,” by means of which the jeweller can enable anyone who desires to order a ring, to judge of the effect of various stones when worn as ring settings. This little device is open at one end, the metal band being flexible enough to yield to slight pressure applied to both sides. In front, on either side, are two claws, which open up and grasp the stone when the pressure is relaxed. Thus one gem after another can be displayed. Sets of these display-rings are made comprising eighteen different sizes.[590]

When a ring has become painfully and injuriously tight on a finger, a simple method and often efficacious, for its removal, is to take several feet of cotton cord, soak this in soapsuds, glycerine, or oil, and pass one end of it under the ring, leaving about six inches loosely hanging down. The other end of the cord is then to be wound tightly around the finger, beginning close to the ring and continuing over the middle joint up to the end of the finger. If left on for a while, the cord compresses the flesh to such an extent that when it is unwound by pulling at the loose end hanging down from the base of the finger, the ring will be gradually and painlessly forced off. In very serious cases it is safest to file through the hoop and bend it open sufficiently to free the finger. The trifling injury to the ring can easily be repaired, leaving it in all respects in its original condition.

A ring that fits too tightly may become a source of serious injury to the wearer in course of time. This applies especially to engagement or wedding-rings, for many wearers have a sentimental, or even superstitious disinclination to remove such a ring after it has once been placed on the finger by the cherished donor. Slight as the effects appear to be, since the progressive tightening is so very gradual, there have been cases where the increasing plumpness of a hand has caused the pressure of the ring to become so intense as to induce an affection of the arm, rendering it liable to serious trouble in case of an attack of rheumatism or a severe cold. In some cases, when such a tight ring has been cut from the hand, the present writer has seen that the entire finger under the ring was an open wound, occasionally a deep one.[591]

Throughout Europe—England and the Continent—narrow gold rings are generally worn, almost invariably of 22-carat gold; among the poorer classes, the standard falls to 18-carat—never lower. In the United States the correct wedding ring is a 22-carat ring, but away from the large cities and among their less prosperous inhabitants 18-carat rings are worn to a considerable extent. These are often two, three, or four times the weight of the European 22-carat ring, flatter and sharp on the edges, thus cutting the finger. Frequently perspiration under the ring will cause the finger to become sore and infected. The narrow ring is more rounded on the inside and never infects the finger in any way.

Charges of selling illegally stamped wedding-rings have recently been preferred in a New York court. The proceedings were instituted under paragraph 431 of the Penal Law. The marking in one case was “14 Kt. ¹⁄₁₀,” this having been stated to signify that nine-tenths of the metal was 14-carat gold and one-tenth of some baser metal. The real meaning, however, appears to be that one-tenth is of 14–carat gold, the remaining nine-tenths being alloy. The ring was found to weigh 72 grains, and on being tested at the United States Assay Office, the fineness of the entire metal was determined to be ⁵²/₁₀₀₀, equivalent to a fineness of but 12½ carats for the one-tenth represented to be of 14–carat gold. The utmost variation from standard permitted by the statute is one carat. The quantity of pure gold in such a ring would only be about 3¾ grains, worth a fraction over 16 cents. The rings were sold for $3.75 and $4.

An alarm ring, giving the wearer timely notice if its stone setting should fall out, has recently been invented. Beneath the stone, a needle traversing the ring is so adjusted to a coiled spring that if the stone drops out, the spring is released, and the needle-point gives a slight prick to the wearer’s finger. The idea is ingenious enough and the ring may find favor among those who value their ring-stones enough to endure a “sharp reminder” of their loss when this helps their recovery.[592]

A curious and interesting example of inlaying, is a gold ring owned by B. G. Fairchild, Esq., of New York. In the flat bezel have been inserted two winged figures, cut in intaglio on pieces of brown chalcedony. As there is no margin of stone showing about the figures, the effect is very striking, the chalcedony appearing to be naturally embedded in the gold. This is a production of antique art.

In designing a ring the goldsmith must constantly bear in mind that only the upper part, less than half the circle, will be displayed, and he should thus carefully avoid regarding the whole ring as an ornamental object and chasing or adorning the part that will not be shown. To this end he is advised to model the design in wax on the circlet itself, rather than to work from a sketch or drawing. If any plant or other nature form enters into his composition, he should, where possible, have a specimen before him while he works, so that whatever modifications or adaptations he may make will not violate the main lines of the natural type. In making a ring of solid metal, it is either cast in the desired form, or hammered from a cast. After the metal has been annealed, the design is sketched on in black water-color; it is then outlined with a small round-edged tracing-tool and the ground-work is chiselled away. The design can now be finished with chasing tools.[593]

The making of finger rings as well as of everything else has been strongly influenced by machine production. Cloth is machine-made, pictures are lithographed, lace, macaroni, and even small houses are now produced with an exactness that was never before possible. But, unfortunately, with the dominance of the “machine-made” product, the artistic quality is entirely obliterated. Rings are now made in such vast quantities that exactness of reproduction is the great aim. Thus while the initial design may possess a certain measure of originality, the single ring of the type, one out of thousands or tens of thousands stamped out of the same model, necessarily lacks that personal touch which alone can produce a truly artistic object.

Names of the Ring[594] in Various Foreign Languages.

The following hints as to the proper pronunciation of some of the rare words in the above list have been kindly furnished by Prof. John Dyneley Prince, of Columbia University, who has also supplied several of the names:

In prsten (Bulgarian, Bohemian and Serbo-Croatian), the r has a peculiar rolling sound with an inherent vowel; this cannot be correctly reproduced in English spelling. The ci of Polish piercien is pronounced like the Italian ci (chee). Little Russian (Ruthenian) and Russian persten means literally “finger-thing.” In the Lithuanian ziedas, the z is pronounced like French j, or our z and azure. The Hungarian gyürü sounds like dyü-rü; it means something rolled. The ṭ in Hebrew, Arabic and Syriac is an explosive t unknown in English; the letter rendered by the sign is a deep, guttural and faucal exhalation. Irish fainne is pronounced fau-in-nye, and the Welsh bodrwy is sounded as bod-roo-ee.

The word “ring,” tabba-ath, appears once in Genesis (xli: 42), the ring given by Pharaoh to Joseph; six times in Esther iii: 10, 12; viii: 2, 8 (bis), 10, the ring of Ahasuerus. In the New Testament the ring is mentioned once in Luke xv: 22, the ring given the Prodigal Son; and once in the Epistle of James, ii: 2. The word “rings,” as finger-rings, occurs in Exodus xxxv: 22, of the offerings of the people of Israel in the desert; in Numbers xxxi: 50; in Canticles v: 14 (this is probably to be rendered “rods”),[598] and in Isaiah iii: 21. That rings should be so rarely alluded to in the Old Testament might seem to prove that they were not as extensively worn in the land of Israel as some have assumed. The finest ancient Hebrew signet is said to be one of the time of Jeroboam II, King of Israel (790–749? B.C.), found at Megiddo. This is the seal of Shemai, the King’s Minister of State. It is of jasper and bears the finely engraved figure of a lion. The form is oval and the seal measures 3.7 by 2.7 cm.[599]