Weighing a whopping 23 grams, this ring is adorned with parallel grooves on each side as well as an image of a married couple in the center.
Rosen Mladenov/BTA PhotoThe wedding ring was found 20 feet below the surface and dates to roughly the second or third century C.E.
A Roman wedding ring was just discovered during an archaeological excavation at the ancient ruins of Bononia in northwestern Bulgaria.
The ring was found 20 feet underground, in a layer that dates back to the late second or early third century C.E. Furthermore, this rare find may provide insights into the marriage rituals of the ancient Romans in this region.
Founded as a military fort in the first century C.E., Bononia has just completed its 11th consecutive year of excavations. While further work has now paused for the winter, the archaeological team will return next year to continue uncovering the secrets of this ancient city.
The Gold Roman Wedding Ring Found In Bulgaria
BTA PhotoThe ring, which is made of gold and weighs more than 23 grams, likely to belonged to a wealthy individual.
The ring was found on the final day of excavation for the season, according to the Bulgarian News Agency. Based on the archaeological layer in which it was found, the ring likely dates back to the latter half of the second century C.E., or perhaps the early third century.
It is made of pure gold and weighs a remarkable 23.63 grams. Considering the hefty weight of the ring, it may have belonged to someone with considerable wealth.
At its center, it’s adorned not with a gemstone, but with an engraving of a married couple. The band of the ring is decorated with parallel grooves, or flutes, on either side of its center oval, which has been soldered to the rest of the ring.
Archaeologists believe it was made locally, perhaps in the nearby city of Ratiaria, now the village of Archar.
Director of excavations Zdravko Dimitrov described the find as “a ring of marital fidelity” that would have been given from one member of a newly married couple to the other. Rings such as this one were regularly used throughout the Roman world to symbolize marital loyalty.
The Heavily Fortified Roman City Of Bononia
BTA PhotoThe Roman ruins of Bononia sit in the modern Bulgarian city of Vidin.
Rich with artifacts dating back nearly two millennia, Bononia has now undergone excavations for 11 years straight. The ancient city was founded as a military fortification that was part of the Roman Empire’s First Cisipadensium Cohort. For centuries thereafter, Bononia served as an important location for not only defense of the empire’s borders, but for controlling trade in the region.
While the settlement itself was founded sometime during the first century C.E., its stone fortress wasn’t built until the reign of Constantine in the third century. Extremely well fortified, this rectangular fort had walls that were more than 14 feet thick.
The longest sides of the fort ran along the Danube River, which served as a natural boundary for the empire in this area. Large towers were built at a regular distance from one another alongside the length of the fort. The towers themselves were enormous, with internal diameters of 65 feet.
Many of the archaeological discoveries that have been made over the years at Bononia have provided a glimpse of what daily life was like in a settlement at the edge of the Roman Empire. For one, the recently uncovered wedding ring shows that common social customs, like the exchanging of such rings, were still present even in locations far from the empire’s bustling central cities.
The Bononia excavations have now been shut down for the winter, though they are expected to continue next year as archaeologists try to uncover as much of the ancient city as possible and eventually open it up to visitors.
After reading about the gold Roman wedding ring found in Bulgaria, see the medieval “love motto” ring found by a metal detectorist in England. Then, learn about the 1,800-year-old Venus ring uncovered in Northern France.
