The Poison Ring

by Christopher Duquet

blog thumbnail the poison ring christopher duquet evanston

Back in the Middle Ages jewelry was a little more lethal! Rings were made for royal customers and the merchant princes that were elaborate and decorative, and sometimes had another function. These rings held poison in them and were used to eliminate fellow diners or drinkers who had fallen out of their favor. Some of the rings, which were also containers, were elaborate and often had clever mechanisms. We made our own poison ring as homage to these pieces. The ring we created uses a black spinel and is made in a style reminiscent of medieval art. There is a “dragon skin” pattern on the ring shank to give it a little more authority and the container is held closed by hidden magnets that make the mechanism invisible from the outside.

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