Roman silver ring with engraved Chi-Rho monogram

This is a rare Roman silver ring with an early Christian Chi-Rho monogram. The monogram is cut into the bezel.

The Chi Rho is one of the earliest forms of christogram. formed by superimposing the first two (capital) letters Chi and Rho (XP) of the greek word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ (Christus). The Chi-Rho symbol was used by the Roman emperor Constantine I (r. 306-337) as part of  a military standard. In pre-Christian times, the Chi-Rho symbol was also to mark a particularly valuable or relevant passage in the margin of a page and some coins were marked with a Chi-Rho.

Material: silver
Weight: 5,12 gram
Date: Late Roman, 3rd – 4th century AD
Measurement: overall: 20 x 19 mm, ringsize: 17 mm
Condition: Extremely fine condition