Signet rings – from ancient Egypt to 21st Century Hong Kong

Signet rings are surging in popularity for both men and women in Hong Kong. Once seen as exclusive to elite families and secret societies, designer signet rings are now a fashionable assertion of an individual.

In English, the word signet is derived from the Latin word ‘signum’, which means ‘sign’ or ‘mark’. Signet rings typically consisted of a substantial gold band topped with a large flat surface – usually round or oval shaped – called the head. Jewellers of antiquity would deeply engrave letters, symbols or shapes into the head. This engraving would be inverted and reversed on the ring, so when pressed into hot wax it would leave a three dimensional impression of the design. The bands would need to be substantially weighty enough to withstand the pressure of pushing the head into the wax to create a seal.

These early rings would be individually crafted to represent a specific office of authority or an individual of high standing. Signet rings bearing hieroglyphs have been discovered in archeological excavations in Egypt, implying that their use dates back at least to the ancient Pharaohs. The Romans certainly adopted this practice for high ranking citizens and positions of military rank or civilian authority.

In the European Medieval era, knights began to decorate their shields and surcoats (worn over their armour) with specific animals and symbols to identify themselves in tournaments and in battle. This was the beginning of the European Heraldic tradition; the combination of colours, animals and objects came to reflect specific values that would represent particular knights and their family name. For example, Lions represented valour and bravery, and an anchor would usually denote a connection to the sea, but also meant salvation or hope. From these beginnings in the 12^th Century, the designs of the Heraldic symbols became known as a ‘coat of arms’. The adoption of a coat of arms was initially limited to individual knights, but soon became ubiquitous with royal houses and elite families more generally and also synonymous with prestigious institutions such as schools, guilds, courts and offices of authority such as mayors and councilors.

These coats of arms started to be applied to signet rings, which were still being used to create official seals. The detail of the heraldic symbols would either be engraved into precious metals directly or carved into soft gemstones such as agate or carnelian, which would be set into the head of the ring. As the use of ink and quills became more widespread and available, signatures began to replace the need for signet seals (particularly around the 16^th century). The rings remained popular within elite families and members of distinguished societies and guilds, but more as jewellery to denote their class or membership of a fraternity, rather than for the practical purpose of applying an official seal.

Since signet rings were no longer serving a purpose to create a seal, the need to engrave them in reverse was no longer a crucial feature of the design. Moving into the 20^th century, signet rings were increasingly being engraved with more simplified designs: often monogramed initials of the wearer or a streamlined version of the coat of arms; referred to as a crest. There are even stories of the British Ministry of Defense issuing signet rings to undercover agents with hidden compasses beneath the head.

Over the last few years in Hong Kong, people have been keen to apply their own creative expression to signet rings, which continue to hold their representation of prestige in society. Haywards are one of the few jewelers in Hong Kong that specialize in making custom designed signet rings. “We see a very broad range of requests” says Haywards co-founder, David Nazer. “We have made signet rings with Chinese characters, animals from the zodiac and monogram letters. We have also designed complex heraldic coat of arms and symbols for fraternal societies. The crucial part to the design is making it personal, the design can be anything that has meaning for the person wearing it”. Haywards combine traditional jewellery craftsmanship with modern technical design, so the client can see their custom style in 3D images before the ring is made in gold.  

Traditionally, signet rings are worn on the pinky (small) finger on the non-dominant hand. They are often presented to young adults as a ‘coming of age’ gift, or to new members of the family through marriage. Since they are usually worn on the smallest fingers, they tend not to be large rings, however the bands are still thick and the head is solid metal. For a fully customized signet ring, prices start at around HKD $12,500 in 18k gold. However, you can expect to pay a lot more if you want a custom engraved gemstone, a reversed engraving or to wear a larger version as a wedding ring.    

Haywards has a page of signet rings on their website: https://haywards.com.hk/product-category/signet-rings/ – you can arrange an appointment by emailing bespoke@haywards.com.hk or calling their Hollywood Road studio on 2545 4400.