Hampton

c. 1847
Greece

This ring commemorates Charles Ridgely’s (1830-1872) first trip abroad in 1846-1848. He accompanied his parents and sister on a Grand Tour that included visits to “Pisa, Florence, Rome, Naples, Palermo, Messina, Syracuse, Malta, Athens, Smyrna, Constantinople, Syra, Corfu, Trieste, Venice, Vienna, Freuwaldau, Graffenberg, Prague, Dresden, Leipsig, Berlin, Hamburg, Hanover, Hamm, Cologne, Leige, Brussels, [and] Paris,” as he recorded in his travel journal. A tag accompanying the ring states "Presented to/ the late Charles/ Ridgely of H/ when a youth by a Greek or// Turkish friend/ of his Parents/ while traveling/ in Greece.  Device/ ‘There is Safety in Silence.’”

Gold, carnelian, leather, silk. L 1.8, W 1.9, D 1.9 cm
Hampton National Historic Site, HAMP 17995