18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Detector finds rare Merovingian gold ring refers to a previously unknown principality

A metal detectorist has unearthed a very rare, 1,500-year-old Merovingian gold ring made of 22-carat gold at Emmerlev in Southwest Jutland, Denmark.

Archaeologists believe the ring may shed light on a previously unknown lineage of royal figures with ties to powerful European dynasties during the early Medieval period.

Dating back to 500-600 CE, the ring is adorned with an oval cabochon almandine garnet, a prized red semi-precious stone symbolizing power among Germanic peoples.

When Lars Nielsen discovered a large gold ring with a red semi-precious stone, he realized he had made the find of a lifetime. “I was so excited and amazed that I could hardly say anything, and that doesn’t usually describe me. But without a doubt, this is my best find yet. I am very proud and honored to be able to contribute a piece of our shared history both locally and nationally” Nielsen said.

After being discovered by metal detectorist Lars Nielsen in 2020, the discovery was kept secret until recently, allowing specialists to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the Emmerlev site without hindrance. The discovery connects southwestern Jutland to France’s influential Merovingian dynasty.

For the Germanic peoples, the almandine garnet was a symbol of power. The gold ring’s design, featuring four spirals on the underside and trefoil knobs where the band meets the bezel, showcases the highest quality of Frankish craftsmanship, indicative of its elite wearer. Jewellery and rings of this type were worn exclusively by the elite of the Merovingian dynasty.

Nationalmuseet i København (National Museum of Denmark)
Photo: Nationalmuseet i København (National Museum of Denmark)

The spiral embellishments and three-lobed settings are hallmarks of Frankish metalworking from this period, said Kirstine Pommergaard, a curator at the museum.

Experts from the National Museum of Denmark and Museum Sønderjylland analyzed the ring and concluded that its presence in Emmerlev indicates the existence of a princely family with close ties to the Merovingian rulers.

“The gold ring not only reveals a possible new princely family in Emmerlev but also connects the area with one of Europe’s largest centers of power in the Iron Age. The gold ring is probably a woman’s ring and may have belonged to a prince’s daughter who was married to a prince in Emmerlev. Gold was typically reserved for diplomatic gifts, and we know that people married into alliances, just it probably happened with Thyra and Gorm the Old and in more recent times when Christian IX became known as ‘Europe’s father-in-law’ for marrying his daughters into other royal houses, ” said Pommergaard.

Other objects have been found in the same area – most notably two gold and seven silver coins or Frisian-turned pottery, which confirm contact with the Merovingian area, probably through allies in Friesland.

The ring’s craftsmanship and gemstone were meant to showcase status and connections within Scandinavia, Pommergaard said.

The rich but still-emerging history of the aristocratic networks of coastal Jutland is made more intriguing by the new discovery. The people there hope that further study of the ring and its surroundings will shed light on the once-semi-autonomous political systems along the North Sea.

Cover Photo: Nationalmuseet i København (National Museum of Denmark)

Related Articles

Ancient Greek Marble Workshop Unearthed on Paros Island

20 May 2025

20 May 2025

The world of ancient Greek art continues to amaze modern scholars, with recent excavations on Paros Island unveiling a long-lost...

Archaeologists find a Roman military watchtower in Morocco for the first time

7 November 2022

7 November 2022

A Roman military watchtower the first of its kind was discovered by a team of Polish and Moroccan archaeologists in...

Ancient Library With Unparalleled Architecture Found in Stratonikeia, Marble City of Gladiators

24 June 2025

24 June 2025

An ancient marvel, unique in design and history, is being unearthed in the heart of southwest Türkiye. Archaeologists working in...

A Gold Mourning Ring Found on The Isle of Man

21 April 2021

21 April 2021

The ring found with a metal detector on the Isle of Man in December 2020 will be exhibited in the...

Works on Brussels metro line uncovered remains of the second city wall

18 April 2023

18 April 2023

Construction work on the new metro line 3 in Brussels, the Belgian capital, has revealed part of the second rampart...

Two Altars Used for Blood Sacrifices and Divinations Discovered in the Ancient Thracian City of Perperikon

14 September 2024

14 September 2024

In the ancient Thracian city of Perperikon, partly carved into the rock in the Eastern Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria, two...

The oldest trace of human activity discovered in North America dates back 23,000 years

26 September 2021

26 September 2021

A recent fossil footprint found in New Mexico, the United States, indicates that humans existed in North America about 23,000...

Researchers use AI to read words on ancient Herculaneum scroll burned by Vesuvius

13 October 2023

13 October 2023

Researchers used artificial intelligence to extract the first word from one of the first texts in a charred scroll from...

2000-year-old Ancient Greek ‘graduate school yearbook’ carved in stone found

5 June 2022

5 June 2022

Historians have discovered that an ancient Greek inscription on a marble slab in the collection of the National Museums of...

Rare Langsax fighting blade with Viking origins discovered in Poland

20 August 2021

20 August 2021

Archaeologists working in the Wdecki Landscape Park in Poland’s Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship have discovered a rare langsax long knife with potential...

An Amazing Discovery in the 1900-year-old Rock Church, – Sand Dollar Fossil

5 March 2024

5 March 2024

Located in the eastern province of Diyarbakır’s Eğil district, the rock church, the walls of which are decorated with different...

A Thousand-Year-Old Iron Age-old grave in Finland Is Ascribed to a Prominent Non-Binary Person

10 August 2021

10 August 2021

Archaeologists found a weapon grave in Finland’s Suontaka Vesitorninmäki in 1968. The remains discovered in the burial have been at...

A princely tomb discovered in the infrastructure project of the A7 Ploieşti-Buzău highway in Romania

20 December 2022

20 December 2022

An impressive archaeological discovery took place on the Ploiești-Buzău section of the Moldova Highway. The excavations uncovered a princely tomb,...

The Mysterious Prehistoric Underwater Structure Beneath Lake Michigan

6 February 2024

6 February 2024

A prehistoric structure reminiscent of England’s iconic Stonehenge has been uncovered in Grand Traverse Bay, an arm of Lake Michigan...

One of the Oldest Tin-Bronze Knife in the Eurasian Steppe Discovered in a Unique Bronze Age Cemetery in Uygur ­Autonomous Region

29 January 2025

29 January 2025

Chinese archaeologists have recently uncovered a large and uniquely structured cemetery dating back to 2800-2600 BC, located about two kilometers...