Berlin Iron Ring

Hello to all,

Firstly I hope everyone is safe and well.
Purchased this thinking it was a seal ring, knew that it was broken however purchased for £10.
On receipt still believed it to be an early seal ring, advertised as potentially steel, I knew it was too dark to be steel and do believe it’s Iron, good weight to it.
Have researched the symbolism of a resting anchor with loop against the crucifix along with a flaming heart, believe is ‘Faith hope and Charity’ and I believe this is called a ‘Berlin Iron ring’, around 1815, where the Prussian rulers asked their citizens to give up their gold for the war against Napoleon.
As I said, purchased from someone who found metal detecting.

Thoughts please?

Kindest regards

Tim

 

Definitely Faith, Hope & Charity, with Faith emphasized. Looks like an iron ring, but cannot say if it would be Berlin iron.

 

Nice ring, HIY, but it isn't Berlin Iron. Berlin Iron is more elegant, like filigree.

Iron rings have been worn since Antiquity. They are still found regularly here in the Netherlands, from different periods in history. Yours is a fairly late example, maybe 19th century.

 

These are Berlin Iron:

 

Thanks everyone for your reply and have seen the examples you show above, however found this on the Fred Leighton website, according to numerous searches Fred Leighton is a well known in the states?

 

They seem to be retailers though, not jewellery historians or experts on Berlin Iron. Some sellers will say anything to sell, others are confused or choose the first thing as long as it doesn't cost too much research.
That price is ridiculous, but if they are well known, as you say, they could find someone with more money than sense.

 

the expression "fer de Berlin" was spread by the Napoleonic armies all over the continent. this ring here doesn not look like it because the French had a high respect to the finesse and definition in detail of - mostly - the statues they saw in Germany.
the trick was rather simple; the Königlich Preußische Eisengießerei looked to the quality of the material that went into the smelter - not everything that was laying around was good enough and it was looked that it had the same origin . this gave a pure iron that had a better flowing property, less blowholes and allowed very fine castings.
the normal iron jewelry was lateron titled fer de Berlin as well sometimes, but that was only a selling argument.