An eye-catching shock of colour draws the eye to this Victorian ring, the centre stone complemented by delicate rose cut diamonds and graphic linear styling into the band. The shoulder design is evocative of wheat motifs popular in Victorian (and later Edwardian and Art Deco) jewelry, representing prosperity and fertility, and the bounty of the earth.

Though untested, we suspect the ruby is synthetic - synthetic rubies are chemically identically to natural, but created through a number of lab processes, and began to appear in the late 1800s, rising to prominence in the Deco period as production techniques improved. If it is synthetic, it's possibly original to the ring, which was made c. 1900, or potentially a later replacement.

Details:
• 18k yellow gold, with full British hallmarks for Chester 1900, makers mark BHJ
• Size 8.25 and sizeable, with evidence of past sizing up
• Rise off finger is 2mm, width at face is 6mm, back of band is 2mm wide and 0.6mm thick
• 2.5g