1. What is the origin of the signet rings? Since prehistoric times, to show possession, man has been marking objects, places, animals and even people. The first sign used was a single X, the ancestor of today’s markers and stamps!
Seals preceded the use of writing. Its origins go back to the regions of Mesopotamia.
2. What is the etymology of bookmarks? The word “seal” comes from the Roman word sigillum, a diminutive of signum. It means a sign, battle mark, token, or symbol. And in ancient Greece, sphragis (?????i?) means a seal, a seal, and therefore, by implication, the mark imprinted by the seal. We also note that in English, horse (chevalier) and rider (chevalier) have the same root as signet ring (chevaliere).
3. Who wore bookmark rings? Signet rings dating back to the 14th century BC have been found in Egypt. C., even one with the name of Pharaoh Tutankhamen. Egyptian dignitaries used one seal for their own correspondence, home, and belongings, and a second seal for diplomatic and legal matters.
4. In ancient Rome, the gold signet ring, or ius anulorum, was characteristic of the Roman equestrian aristocracy. The ruling classes dictated their documents instead of writing them personally, and thus the need for a bookmark for authentication arose.
5. The Merovingian Frankish kings (481-751) continued the Roman tradition of wearing signet rings, and this became the preferred practice during the seventh century when the use of papyrus gave way to parchment. Once again in history, the image on the seal was linked with royalty.
6. Clemence of Burgundy, Countess of Flanders, is one of the earliest medieval women to whom we can trace a seal (ca. 1100-1105 AD) showing that seals were used among the highest female nobility of the XII century.
7. During the Middle Ages, the use of seals reached its height and spread among the general population (a seal from a notable Normandy farmer has even been found) in the form of crest rings, which were easier to wear. . The bookmarks had become the extension, representation and legal affirmation of the owner’s social status. One could even compare, to some extent, the markers with our modern identification cards.
8. With the advent of ingenious forgeries (with a hot blade a person could lift the wax) countermarks were invented to be printed on the reverse of the document directly behind the main seal. Many institutional seals had become quite large (several inches) and impossible to use as a ring, countermarks were often smaller and eventually became signet rings. The evolution of passwords in medieval French society is as follows: they appeared during the 11th century, were used by the church during the 12th century, and by lords during the 13th and 14th centuries. Carlos VI (1368-1422) declared that documents sealed only with his countermark would have the same value as those sealed with the higher seal. This then became a general trend during the 15th century, and from then on, most seals only featured the family coat of arms…
9. The medieval seal led to the contemporary legal value of “signing” a document. When the use of paper was imposed, the signature and notarization replaced the wax seal that could not resist on such a fine support.