Origins Behind Tolkien’s One Ring
Scholars and fans have long wondered what sparked J. R. R. Tolkien’s creation of the One Ring in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. A real artifact long associated with this lore sits in museum displays, inviting fans and history enthusiasts to examine its story up close. The ring in question was found in 1785 in a field near a historic Roman town in southern England. It is made of gold, weighs roughly 12 grams, bears a carefully etched image of the goddess Venus, and carries a Latin inscription that reads “Senicianus live well in God.” Source: British Museum.
Beyond its decorative marks, the ring is tied to a separate tablet discovered near a temple dedicated to the god Nodens. The tablet recounts that a man named Silvianus lost the ring and laid a curse on Senicianus until the ring could be returned to the temple. This linked narrative has fed the idea that the ring bears a power or burden, a tale that resonates with readers of ancient legends. Source: Nodens Temple Tablet collection.
Tolkien was a professor of philology at Oxford University in 1929 when a friend, an archaeologist connected to this case, asked him to help uncover the roots of the names written on the tablet. Tolkien reportedly visited the temple many times before putting pen to paper, and many scholars regard those early visits as part of the mosaic that shaped his monumental fantasy. The possibility that this fourth-century relic could have helped spark the most famous ring in literary history remains a topic of debate among experts. Photo courtesy of Helen Sanderson.