430 Rovina
fourteenth- and fifteenth-century contexts, are made of silver with a thin rod,
whose ends are decorated with vegetal or zoomorphic motifs, and which have
settings, shaped like petaled goblets, that enclose small coral or shell beads.33
Rather more common are bronze, gilt bronze, or silver rings with a flat
circular setting, decorated with engraved letters or stylized designs, such as
a bird or a cross between a star and a lily. A very interesting variant of this
type includes a band with a raised strip with a relief of three ovals that has
a schematic rendering of a lamb with a triangular standard on which is de-
picted a cross, which can be interpreted as the Christian symbol of Agnus Dei
(Fig. 16.12). Written testimony of these rings comes from two documents of the
mid-fourteenth century—inventories of goods confiscated by the Aragonese
government from citizens of Sassari, who were expelled after a revolt.34 They
mention silver and enamel clips, silver and coral buttons, gold rings with sap-
phires, garnets, and turquoise, and “unus anulus cum sigillo in quo est sculpta
figura Agnus Dei.”35 The considerable diffusion of these rings exclusively in
northern Sardinia suggests local production with limited circulation.
The precious objects listed in the aforementioned documents testify to the
high standard of living among local wealthy families. A comparison of this jew-
elry and the more modest kind found in graves refers not only to difference in
33 Rovina, “Gioielli e complementi di abbigliamento.”
34 Laura Galoppini, Ricchezza e potere nella Sassari aragonese (Pisa, 1989).
35 Galoppini, Ricchezza e potere nella Sassari aragonese, p. 124. The image of Agnus Dei was
impressed on wax medals from the earliest Christian times. Its protective powers are enu-
merated in the document Rito ed uso delle cere sagre, volgarmente chiamate Agnus Dei;
see Ennio Dalmasso, “I segni della religiosità popolare,” in Gioielli. Storia, linguaggio, reli-
giosità dell’ornamento in Sardegna (Nuoro, 2004), p. 93.
Figure 16.11 Silver rings with settings holding colored glass (14th–15th c.).