His sister, who had inherited the ring, posted it on eBay earlier this year. The ring that sold for $1,231 originally belonged to Walter Harmon ‘52, who died shortly after graduation. The other, Bruce Sohn ‘83, lost his ring on a senior-year recruiting trip.Īlthough the Coop sells “generic” rings starting at $520, they bear only a graduation year and degree inscription, not one of the unique designs that classes have been creating for themselves for decades. One, Mike Koss ‘83, couldn’t afford a brass rat while he was in school. In his case, he was bidding against at least two other alums. “I have no idea who is bidding them up or why,” he says. The typical 10-karat brass rat contains around $190 worth of gold, yet in recent auctions MIT class rings have sold for $675 to $1,231, according to Rauch. Association staff then notify the class officers for the appropriate years, so they can publicize the auctions, in case anyone’s interested in participating – or has had a ring stolen. Rodgers says he browses the auction sites weekly to look for any MIT class rings or memorabilia for sale. “I’ve seen a dozen or so rings being sold in the past four or five years on eBay,” says Joel Rodgers of the Alumni Association. The online sale of the ‘83 brass rat was not an anomaly.
A typical MIT class ring, better known as a brass rat. Bob Rauch ‘61 paid $964.99 for the ring to replace his own, which had been stolen in a burglary. When the auction closed, the brass rat wound up not in the hands of an ‘83 but on the finger of another alumnus. Ever since, each class has appointed its own Ring Committee, which endeavors to craft a ring that will inspire us while we are here, unite us once we leave, and, above all else, unmistakably symbolize the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.In February, members of the Class of 1983 got an e-mail from their president, Hyun-A Park, announcing that a 1983 class ring was for sale on eBay. So started the Institute tradition of the Brass Rat, the affectionate nickname for the ring that has become a symbol of MIT as well as one of the most recognizable rings worldwide. With the debate settled and the ring finally designed, the Class of 1930 was the first to proudly wear a Brass Rat. He does his best work in the dark.”Ĭiting the fact that many other schools had buildings similar to our Great Dome, the committee ultimately decided to honor our hard-working and industrious mascot on the ring-and thus the Brass Rat was born. The beaver is noted for his engineering, mechanical skills, and industry.
The beaver not only typifies the Tech (student), but his habits are peculiarly our own. Hornady’s book on the animals of North America and instantly chose the beaver. But neither of these were American animals. He is wise, patient, strong, hard working, and, like all who graduate from Tech, has a good hide. The committee looked to the original discussion over the mascot (formally decided upon by President MacLaurin in 1914), calling upon the now famous defense of the beaver by Lester Gardner, Class of 1897: “We first thought of the kangaroo which, like Tech, goes forward in leaps and bounds. The committee agreed upon a three part construction, with a primary image on the bezel of the ring and two other images on the two shanks.Ĭontroversy quickly arose over whether to honor the Beaver or the Great Dome on the bezel some members of the committee even questioned MIT’s choice of the beaver as its mascot. Brigham Allen, then President of the Class of 1929, called upon one member of the classes of 1930, 1931, and 1932 and entrusted them with the task of designing a ring that the Institute Committee would ultimately approve as the Standard Technology Ring. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Brass Rat tradition was born in the spring of 1929.