This matched pair of 14 Karat yellow gold signet rings feature hand
carved, blood red Carnelian gemstones. The gemstones are in a 12 x 14mm.
oval shape. These signet rings were designed for a mother and daughter team
of Champion Homing Pigeon Racers. The "Art Deco Style Lady & Pigeon" is
a custom design.
Carnelian:
- reddish-orange to brownish-black in colour
- an extremely hard gemstone excellent for hand carving
- carves with clear definition and detail, with low contrast
Carnelian is a variety of the silica mineral Chalcedony colored by impurities of iron oxide. The color can vary from pale reddish/orange to intense brownish-black.
It was widely used during Roman times to make engraved gems for signets and seal rings.Carnelian stones were used for imprinting a seal in wax on correspondence and documents. Hot wax does not stick to Carnelian.
Carnelian artifacts have been found in the ruins of Mehrgarh of the 5th millennium B.C. Knossos on Crete has a large cache of Carnelian items from the Bronze Age. Egytians, Phoenicians, Greeks, Etruscans and Assyrians used Carnelian for scarabs and cylinder seals. Hebrew high priests had Carnelian gemstones as the first stone in their breastplates in Moses time.
