Bohemian garnets at their best: a dense, glittering cluster of deep pyrope red stones set close together in an antique silver gilt setting. Each stone is faceted to catch candlelight, and the overall effect is one of saturated, unapologetic color. Bohemian garnets were mined in what is now the Czech Republic and reached peak popularity in the mid-to-late 19th century.

The rose cut garnets bloom from the setting like zinnia under the North Carolina summer sun, yet their blood red color is undeniably vampiric. It also reminds me of lustrous pomegranate seeds, and, therefore, the myth of Persephone and her annual descent to the underworld. She takes spring with her, leaving us with barren earth until her return.

I find this ring sits at the boundary of summer and fall, light and dark, river and sea. Like an estuary, this ring contains multitudes. 

OBJECT RECORD