Archaeologists have unearthed an intriguing 18th-century artifact in northern Michigan.The item in question, a brass trade ring, was found during an excavation at Colonial Michilimackinac—a reconstructed 18th-century fort and fur trading village west of the Mackinac Bridge.The bridge connects Michigan's Upper and Lower peninsulas, spanning the Straits of Mackinac—a body of water that connects Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.
The ring was found in a demolition rubble pile from the 1780s located at the excavation site of a row house known as House E within the reconstructed fort.'The archaeology team had a nice find yesterday morning—a brass trade ring,' Lynn Evans, curator of archaeology for Mackinac State Historic Parks, said in the press release.'Although these rings are sometimes referred to as 'Jesuit rings', by the 18th century they were strictly secular trade goods.