Antique jewelry glossary

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Nun's ring

A type of finger ring received by a nun upon making her profession as a bride of Christ. The only known identifiable surviving example, c. 1300, is a gold, ridged hoop inscribed in Latin 'With this ring of chastity I am espoused to Jesus Christ'; but there probably are many more that remain unrecognized because of lack of an explicit inscription. They were worn by nuns throughout Europe.

From: An Illustrated Dictionary of Jewelry, autor: Harold Newman, publishers: Thames and Hudson