**ANELLI, Luigi.** — Priest and historian, born in Lodi on 17 January 1813, died in Milan on 19 January 1890. He embraced the ecclesiastical career and was ordained priest in 1835. A convinced republican, in 1848 he was part of the provisional government of Lombardy, opposing the law of 12 May which decreed the merger with Piedmont. He then went into exile in Nice where he wrote a *Storia d’Italia dal 1814 al 1850* (2 vols., 1856), later continued up to 1867 (6 vols., 1864-68). Returning to his homeland in 1859, the college of Lodi sent him as its deputy to the Chamber for the 7th legislature. In the session of 28 May 1860, he delivered a violent speech against the cession of Nice and Savoy to France, a speech that provoked lively incidents due to his attacks on Cavour’s policy of bartering, and whose full text appeared only in *Il Diritto*. Riti-
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1. **The Rings of the Supreme Pontiff.** — The Pope has three distinct rings: the ring (v. below) of the Fisherman (piscatory), the pontifical ring, and the ordinary ring.
**Pontifical ring.** — It is similar to the ring worn by bishops when pontificating, but is much richer. The Pope receives it from the cardinal bishop assistant according to the ceremonies proper to the papal Mass.
**Ordinary ring.** — Like bishops, the Pope habitually wears the ring on the right hand. On Good Friday, during the Mass of the Presanctified, the Pope goes to the chapel without a ring on his finger and without giving the blessing: this must also be observed by all who have the use of it, as a sign of mourning for the death of the Lord.
2. **Cardinal’s ring.** — This is the ring received by cardinals in the secret consistory, as a badge of their dignity, when the Pope assigns them the titles of the churches. It consists of a gold circle with a sapphire beneath whose setting is an enamel bearing the Pope’s coat of arms. Its origin is unknown, but it is already mentioned in the 12th century.
3. **Bishop’s ring.** — Bishops have two rings: the pontifical one, for solemn functions; and the ordinary one, which consists of a gold circle with a stone surrounded by diamonds.
A plenary indulgence of 50 days (S. Uff., 18 Apr. 1909) is granted to whoever kisses the ring of a cardinal or a bishop.
4. **Rings of abbots and prelates “nullius.”** — Can. 325 of the CIC grants to abbots *nullius* the privilege of wearing everywhere a ring with a single gem, which is given to them, as also to other regular abbots, in the solemn blessing they receive. It is believed that the first concession dates back to the end of the 10th century.
5. **Rings of lower prelates.** — The *motu proprio* *Inter multiplices* of Pius X (21 Feb. 1905) definitively regulates the use of the ring for apostolic protonotaries. Only participating protonotaries may wear the ring with a single gem everywhere and always: supernumerary protonotaries and those *ad instar participantium* may use the ring only in pontifical functions. Honorary protonotaries do not have the use of the ring.
Can. 136, §2 of the CIC forbids the use of the ring to all clerics who do not have the privilege by law or by apostolic indult. The apostolic indult is, in any case, necessary to wear the ring during the celebration of Mass, unless it is a cardinal, a bishop, or a blessed abbot (can. 811, §2).
6. **Doctor’s ring.** — Eugenius III, who instituted academic degrees, granted to doctors ritually created the use of the ring with a single gem. A similar provision is found in can. 1378 of the CIC.
7. **Wedding ring.** — It is given by the groom to the bride at the moment of the celebration of marriage, and is blessed for the mystical significance it must have:
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Having withdrawn from public life, he spent his final years until his death in Nice and Milan, devoted to historical and philosophical studies, though in a liberal and always...
St. Peter kneeling in the boat in the act of pulling the net, and in the sky the name of the Pope followed by his ordinal number. Around the wax (except in the lower part) was attached a braid of parchment to protect the seal from rubbing.
In 1842 the wax seal was replaced by a round red stamp, which preserves the representation of the fisherman's ring.
A. IN ART. — With the advent of Christianity, the pagan symbols and figures that adorned the seal gave way to others of sacred subject matter that were closely related to the iconographic repertoire of the catacombs; in the majority of specimens — the collection in the British Museum in London is interesting for the variety of types — the execution is rather summary and rough. The bishop’s ring originated from the necessity he had to affix his own seal to official acts; in the course of time it acquired the meaning of a seal of the true faith and became a symbol of union between the shepherd and his diocese. Already in the 7th century it was a normal episcopal attribute in Spain and became so in France in the 9th century and a little later in all other regions of the West. In relation to the new meaning and the different orientation of taste, the engraved seal was generally replaced by the bezel with a colored picture, sometimes engraved; not infrequently cameos or carved stones from pagan antiquity were also used. During the Renaissance the ring reached a high degree of artistry also through the combination of various techniques such as niello and enamel; it appears more massive in the bezel during the Baroque age. Particular mention should be made of the fisherman’s ring whose form has remained unchanged at least since the 15th century; it is a ring generally of gilded bronze with a rock crystal engraved with the representation of the boat and the name of the Pope who uses it to affix the seal to briefs; immediately after his death it is destroyed.