‘Whole Universe In Your Finger…’ A 16th Century Antique Ring Thrills Internet World
Mobilenews24x7 Bureau
A back to an era of very past. Yes, it is about a ring which dates back to 16th century. Not that it is about a finger but the ring which when unfolded, it reveals it gives an impression of astronomical sphere.
What would it feel like to wear the universe on your finger? Sounds fantastical, like a period drama stuff? Well, to anyone looking at the gold plated circular thing, it appears like a regular ring but when unfolded, it becomes an instrument that could tell about the whole cosmos! Isn’t this intriguing? An image of such a ring is resurfaced the internet and piqued the brains of everyone. A 16-century ring that appears like an astronomical sphere with holding secrets of the universe.
While the ring has made headlines time and again, it has re-surfaced the net and was shared on Twitter by a handle called Wholesome Memes garnering over 154K likes.
— WholesomeMemes (@WholesomeMeme) November 16, 2022
16th Century German gold ring that opens into an armillary sphere enameled with signs of the zodiac. Via @historiskamuse. pic.twitter.com/DNik4ZBrwo
— Ephemeral Elegance (@drapedinhistory) September 29, 2021
According to History of Museum Science, Armillary spheres date back to the ancients, and were certainly used by the 2nd-century astronomer and mathematician Claudius Ptolemy of Alexandria. They were mathematical instruments designed to demonstrate the movement of the celestial sphere about a stationary Earth at its centre.
Smaller armillary spheres such as this one were generally used for demonstration. Much larger armillary spheres were constructed for observation and measurement. These would have carried sights positioned opposite each other on pairs of rings to establish
celestial coordinates.
