Why a Ring?

[doug*platypus]

LOL!! Lindril Arvilya, great call about the marriage thing. I wonder if Tolkien felt like that at his wedding:

As soon as Sauron set the One Ring upon his finger they were aware of him; and they knew him, and perceived that he would be master of them, and of all that they wrought.

Reminds me of another one:

Garth, marriage is punishment for shoplifting in some countries!

The question that started this thread was "why not a weapon?" To answer that, you have to realise that Sauron made the One Ring AFTER other Rings of Power were made, to control them. These rings weren't all weapons. The Elven rings possessed the power to keep safe and maintain the Elven realms so they would not fade. The Dwarven rings made their owners rich. So they only needed to be magic items, and something like a sword would not have been appropriate in some cases. Also, whenever you read about magic the hands are involved, from Harry Potter waving a wand, to Gandalf's staff, to Obi-Wan Kenobi's Jedi mind trick. I'm sure it would be a lot harder or more abstract to 'use' something like a crown.