{{short description|Gold finger ring with a short inscription}} [[Image:Posy Rings.jpg|thumb|Part of the Ashmolean collection]] '''Posie rings''' (sometimes spelled '''posy''', '''posey''' or '''poesy rings''') are gold [[finger ring]]s with a short inscription on their surface. They were popular during the 15th through the 17th centuries in both England and France as lovers' gifts. The language used in many early posy rings was Norman French, with French, Latin and English used in later times. The quotations were often from contemporary courtship stories or [[chapbook]]s and usually inscribed on the inner surface of the ring.<ref name=bm>{{cite web|title=British Museum: Gold 'posy' ring|url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/pe_mla/g/gold_posy_ring.aspx|publisher=British Museum|accessdate=23 January 2013}}</ref> The rings were also given to show regard or as a gift.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wartski.com/posy-ring-messages/|title=Posy Ring Inscriptions – Wartski}}</ref>
The [[Ashmolean Museum]] in [[Oxford]], [[England]], has a vast collection. The [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] in London also has a decently sized collection bequeathed by [[Joan Evans (art historian)|Joan Evans]]. She compiled a list of more than 3000 posies for her book ''English Posies and Posy Rings''.
[[File:2006 T101c, gold posy ring with double row inscription inside from Buttercrambe with Bossall, North Yorkshire (FindID 216018).jpg|thumb|left|A gold posie ring found in Yorkshire]]
==References== {{reflist}}
==Further reading== * {{cite book |last=Evans |first=Joan |title=English posies and posy rings: a catalogue with an introduction by Joan Evans |year=1931 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, England |pages=114 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MTiBAAAAMAAJ}}. Reprinted by [[Wartski]], London, 2012.
==External links== {{commonscat}} * [https://www.flickr.com/photos/stuartyeates/54893120 Posie rings in the Ashmolean] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20080611125813/http://www.wartski.com/Posy%20ring%20messages.htm Posie ring messages, Wartski, London]
[[Category:Rings (jewellery)]]