Ep. 9: Summon the Father-in-Law: The Vyne Ring

This week, Shannon tells Emma the tale of the Vyne Ring, a (almost) cursed object from the time of the ancient Romans, stolen from a man who put his curse down in metal. Was this ring the inspiration for J.R.R. Tolkien's famous novels? Or is it just the discarded piece of jewelry from an unwanted Christmas gift? Join us this week for a short episode about elves, novels, and petty theft, oh my! 

Sources: 

• The National Trust: http://www.nationaltrustcollections.org.uk/object/719789
  
• Astonishing Legends: https://www.astonishinglegends.com/astonishing-legends/2018/7/7/the-ring-of-senicianus
  
• Cursed Objects: Strange but True Stories of the World's Most Infamous Items by J.W. Ocker (https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781683692362)
  
• Imgur: “Behold the cursed ring that may have inspired Tolkien's One Ring” (https://imgur.com/gallery/0I1wu)
  
• Ripley’s Believe It or Not: “One Ring to Curse Them All” (https://www.ripleys.com/weird-news/one-ring-to-curse-them-all/)
  
• YouTube: The Vyne - A Tolkien-inspired experience for children (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mMxjzaSoTs)
  
• CNN: “'The Lord of the Rings' cast is crowdfunding to buy J.R.R. Tolkien's home and turn it into a literary center” by Scottie Andrew (https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/03/entertainment/tolkien-home-lord-of-the-rings-trnd/index.html)