Ring with gold and diamond "MTV" design owned by Fab 5 Freddy: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A gold and diamond “MTV” ring designed by Tito the Jeweler, aka "Manny,” and owned by Fab Five Freddy. The ring is a three dimensional reproduction of the 1981–1994 MTV logo. The ring features a block letter [M] molded on the shank and overlaid on the right with smaller, freeform gold text, encrusted with twenty round diamonds, that reads [TV]. The text [TV] is soldered to the [M] with small gold prongs. Embossed on a solid gold bar below the [M] is small text that reads [MUSIC TELEVISION]. The negative space around the letter [M] is embellished with roughhewn diagonal hatch marks. The other exterior surfaces of the ring and the interior of the shank bottom are smooth. The interior of the ring, under the design element, has an irregular dimpled surface. There are no markings on the ring.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: ca. 1988
• Designed by: Tito D. Caicedo, American, 1961 - 2016
• Owned by: Fab 5 Freddy, American, born 1959
• Subject of: MTV, American, founded 1981
• Type: finger rings
• Medium: diamond on gold
• Dimensions: H x W x D: 1 1/8 × 1 1/2 × 1 7/16 in. (2.9 × 3.8 × 3.7 cm)
• Place made: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Fashion design
• Topic: Hip-hop (Music)
• Topic: Rappers (Musicians)
• Topic: Television
• Object number: 2020.38.6
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Unknown - Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.