"This is the first book devoted exclusively to rings considered thematically rather than chronologically. The author, a world expert, provides the historical and literary context as she considers signets; rings associated with love, marriage and friendship; devotional, protective and ecclesiastical rings; memento mori and memorial rings; rings associated with famous people and great events; decorative rings; diamond rings; and rings as accessories. She makes us delight in them as works of art, and brings them vividly to life through paintings, drawings and quotations." "Rings of all periods are included - from ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome through the Middle Ages and Renaissance up to the 20th century. The rings are drawn not only from great museums but from private collections, preeminently that of the noted gem dealer and art patron Benjamin Zucker."--BOOK JACKET.