ww1 german patriotic ring

[James3567]

Hi all
Im just wondering what type of iron they used to make the patriotic ww1 ring? The one that are inscribed i think it was i gave to the fatherland gold for this iron or somewhere along thos lines any help is appricated regards james

[Wagriff]

Just plain old cheap-o cast iron, is what they used. They made coins out it as well.
From Wiki: "a very pure iron which contained up to 0.7% phosphorus was used. This was done to make the iron slightly more fluid than what it would be when normally molten. Although this type of phosphoric cast iron is rather hard and brittle, strength is not the main purpose of the metal when it is used in jewellery. The molten iron was cast into metal chill moulds."

There were several inscriptions on these popular patriotic pieces, but the most used seems to have been : "Gold gab ich für Eisen" (I gave gold for iron)

[James3567]

Hi wagriff thank you for that looking.at getting just a plain wedding band made from cast iron and wanted a little bit of tradition to go with it as my family is german origin thanks again mate
James

[Wagriff]

I'll tell you, though, if you plan to wear it daily(and, being a wedding ring, I would imagine that you do) that iron can discolor the skin on your finger. Not everyone has this problem, of course, but some people are more acidic than alkaline and they end up with a black ring on their finger beneath the iron! I'd strongly suggest getting a "sample" made up and test wearing it for a while and see if it's good to go, before you make permanent plans! And, yes-iron can and does Rust also!