A gemmel-ring, of which a representation is given (page 316), was dug up in 1800, at Horselydown, Surrey, found among some Roman and English remains and skeletons of human bodies, about nine feet below the surface. The ring is constructed in twin or double hoops, one side being flat, the other convex. On the lower hand is represented a heart. On the flat side of the hoops are engraved in Roman capitals, ‘Usé de Vertu.’ This ring is probably not later than Queen Elizabeth’s reign. A plain gemmel wedding-ring, with an inscription inside each hoop, which the Prince Regent, afterwards George IV., had given to Mrs. Fitzherbert, was exhibited, with the lady’s miniature, at the Loan Collection of precious objects at the South Kensington Museum in 1872. [Illustration: Gemmel-ring, found at Horselydown.] This practice of dividing the betrothal rings has its origin from ancient times, and reminds us of the practice among the Franks of breaking the _sou d’or_ in two pieces, in sign of a sacred engagement. Thus we read of Childeric, King of France, when in exile, wishing to know when he might return to his country, dividing the _sou d’or_, keeping one part, and giving the other to a trusty friend, who tells him: ‘When I send to you this half, and you find that it unites with the other, you will understand that you can return.’ The propitious moment having arrived, Childeric received the token, and, returning, was re-established in his dominions.[64] From other passages in ‘Don Sebastian,’ it appears that one of the two rings was worn by Sebastian’s father, the other by Almeyda’s mother, as pledges of love. Sebastian takes off his ring, which had been placed on his finger by his dying father; Almeyda does the same with hers, which had been given to her by her mother at parting, and Alvarez unscrews both the rings and fits one half to the other. In Sir Henry Ellis’s ‘Original Letters Illustrative of English History’ (series ii. vol. ii. page 290) we have a curious anecdote in connection with linked rings. Lady Catherine Grey (a sister of Lady Jane Grey) married the Earl of Hertford, much to the displeasure of Queen Elizabeth, who sent the bridegroom to the Tower, and subjected the countess to great hardships. They were both exposed to an ordeal of examination to prove the validity of the marriage, and amongst other evidence Lady Catherine exhibited a ring which she declared had been used at the marriage ceremony. It was of gold, and consisted of five links, on four of which were engraved as many verses of the Earl’s composition, expressing the assurance of his lasting faith and love, and the ring could, apparently, have been prepared for no other purpose than that of serving as their marriage-ring.