Dating to the 15th century, this high-carat gold ring is decorated with entwined letter letter S’s. The motif belongs to the visual language of the House of Lancaster and appears on surviving medieval jewelry, livery collars, and other objects associated with Lancastrian allegiance.
The precise meaning of the “S” is most commonly associated with Sovereyne or “Sovereign,” a motto used by Henry IV, though historians have also proposed Spiritus Sanctus (Holy Spirit) and Seneschallus (steward). Whatever its original expansion, by the late 14th and 15th centuries the repeated S had become a recognizable Lancastrian badge, worn as a sign of affiliation and loyalty.
We've never seen one of these before and doubt we will again.
MATERIALS: 22k gold (tests)
AGE: 15th century
CONDITION: Excellent - hollow construction
SIZE: 5, cannot be resized; 2.3mm shank