Sauron created the One Ring in secrecy, so little is known of how he created it. Gandalf was able to do research in the libraries of Gondor to determine the nature and look of the One Ring, but not much more on it’s forging. Luckily, our good friends at Badali Jewelry are much more forthcoming in how they make this very special item. Below is a video of just what goes into making the One Ring, minus the Malice of Sauron being added to it.
Now that you have seen the process, we asked the artisans at Badali what kind of timeline it takes, and here is the response from Janelle Powell:
From start to finish it takes us about a week to make each item, but that is because we are doing each step in batches to maximize our work time. The actual time spent on each One Ring of Power is approximately 3-4 hours of hands on work time (meaning its in the hands of a jeweler and actively being worked on). This does not include time for the investment to set up (approximately 1 hour), time in the burn out ovens (an overnight process), cool down time (15-20 minutes), time in the pickle (varies), time in the ultra sonic cleaner, and time in the tumblers (anywhere from 1hr to overnight). If the item in question is one of our Gollum Gold 24k Gold Plated One Rings these are sent out of house to be plated which takes about a week and a half. Once they come back from the plater we inspect each ring to make sure that the plating was done properly, string them on a chain and pack them in their draw string pouches. If there is any enamel or paint work to be done on the ring, this adds anywhere from 10 minutes – 2 hours of time as well. All and all, it’s a lengthy back breaking process, but the results are well worth it and ensure that we produce the highest quality items for our customers.
Badali Jewelry will be at Wondercon this coming weekend, and can be found at booth #1404, just a few spaces over from TORn’s booth at #1504. Make sure to stop by and say hello, check out their amazing work, and enter their drawing for some free jewelry. You can also visit them on the web right here.