Editing Æthelwulf, King of Wessex (section)

== King Æthelwulf's ring ==
[[File:Ethelwulf's Ring - Illustration from Cassell's History of England - Century Edition - published circa 1902.jpg|thumb|120px|King Æthelwulf's ring]]

King Æthelwulf's ring was found in a cart rut in [[Laverstock]] in Wiltshire in about August 1780 by one William Petty, who sold it to a silversmith in [[Salisbury]]. The silversmith sold it to the [[Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie, 2nd Earl of Radnor|Earl of Radnor]], and the earl's son, [[William Pleydell-Bouverie, 3rd Earl of Radnor|William]], donated it to the [[British Museum]] in 1829. The ring, together with a similar ring of Æthelwulf's daughter Æthelswith, is one of two key examples of [[niello]]ed 9th-century metalwork. They appear to represent the emergence of a "court style" of West Saxon metalwork, characterised by an unusual Christian iconography, such as a pair of peacocks at the [[Fountain of Life]] on the Æthelwulf ring, associated with Christian immortality. The ring is inscribed "Æthelwulf Rex", firmly associating it with the King, and the inscription forms part of the design, so it cannot have been added later. Many of its features are typical of 9th-century metalwork, such as the design of two birds, beaded and speckled borders, and a [[saltire]] with arrow-like terminals on the back. It was probably manufactured in Wessex but was typical of the uniformity of animal ornament in England in the 9th century. In the view of [[Leslie Webster (art historian)|Leslie Webster]], an expert on medieval art: "Its fine [[Trewhiddle style]] ornament would certainly fit a mid ninth-century date."{{sfnm |1a1=Wilson|1y=1964|1pp=2, 22, 34, 142|2a1=Webster|2y=1991|2pp=268–69|3a1=Pratt|3y=2007|3p=65}} In Nelson's view, "it was surely made to be a gift from this royal lord to a brawny follower: the sign of a successful ninth-century kingship".{{sfn|Nelson|2004a}} The art historian [[David M. Wilson|David Wilson]] sees it as a survival of the pagan tradition of the generous king as the "[[Rings in Germanic cultures|ring-giver]]".{{sfn|Wilson|1964|p=22}}