A 2,000-year-old garnet ring from ancient Rome that is believed to have an image of the first Roman emperor sold for nearly 600 times its expected price at a recent jewelry auction in England. The ring, which features an “intaglio” — a carving in a gem or piece of metal that can be used to seal official documents — of Caesar Augustus, was initially estimated to sell for about £150 and £200, reported news agency SWNS.
That amount is roughly $186 to $248 in US dollars, according to the website Currencyrate.com. Instead, after a “heated bidding war,” the ring sold for £117,000 — about $145,000 in US currency. In US dollars, that’s 584 times its initial estimate. The ring was sold by the auction house Fellows Auctioneers, located in Birmingham, England.
