Richard Joyce (c. 1660 – c. 1737) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), pl ...

. Joyce was a member of one of

the Tribes of Galway The Tribes of Galway ( ga, Treibheanna na Gaillimhe) were 14 merchant families who dominated the political, commercial and social life of the city of Galway in western Ireland between the mid-13th and late 19th centuries. They were the families ...

and is credited with the creation of the

Claddagh Ring A Claddagh ring ( gle, fáinne Chladaigh) is a traditional Irish ring in which a heart represents love, the crown stands for loyalty, and two clasped hands symbolize friendship.George Frederick Kunz (1911). Rings for the Finger: From the Earlie ...

. In 1675 he left Galway to serve as an

indentured An indenture is a legal contract that reflects or covers a debt or purchase obligation. It specifically refers to two types of practices: in historical usage, an indentured servant status, and in modern usage, it is an instrument used for commercia ...

servant in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

but his ship was intercepted by

pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

from

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

who enslaved the entire crew. Joyce became the slave of a man in

Algiers Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...

, said to be a

, who made him his apprentice. In 1689

William III William III or William the Third may refer to: Kings * William III of Sicily (c. 1186–c. 1198) * William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702) * William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg ...

became King of England and enforced a request upon the Algerians to release all of his subjects enslaved in the country. Joyce's master offered him half the business and his daughter's hand in marriage if he stayed, but he refused and returned to

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

. There, he is said to have created the original Claddagh ring. Examples of his work from the time of his release to 1737 are still extant. He settled near Rahoon, then outside the town, married and had issue. Joyce's role in the creation of the ring is somewhat debatable, in that goldsmiths such as Richard Joyce ( fl. 1648) and Dominick Martin (died 1676) were already operating in Galway. However, his designs seem to have been the most popular at the time, and perhaps the basis of the present design, so he can be credited as its creator.

References

* ''The mis-titled ‘Joyce’ tomb in the Collegiate Church of St Nicholas, Galway'', James Mitchell, vol. 40, 1985–1986 * ''Galway Goldsmiths:Their mark and ware'', Jack Mulveen, ''Journal of the

Galway Archaeological and Historical Society The Galway Archaeological and Historical Society was founded on 21 March 1900, at the Railway Hotel, Galway. It promotes the study of the archaeology and history of the west of Ireland. Since 1900, the Society has published 70 volumes of the ''J ...

'', vol. 46, 1994 * "Claddagh Ring" in ''The Concise Oxford Dictionary'', ed. Judy Pearsall, Oxford University Press, 2004 People from County Galway Arabian slaves and freedmen Irish goldsmiths 1660s births 1737 deaths 17th-century Irish people 18th-century Irish people 17th-century slaves 18th-century slaves Slavery in Algeria African slaves Slaves from the Ottoman Empire {{Ireland-bio-stub