Kelly Clarkson was stopped by the British government from taking a ring owned by Jane Austen out of the country.
The season one American Idol winner bough the ring at an auction for $228,000 last year according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The ring had a export bar on it in hopes that someone will buy it in the U.K.
The ring “means that objects associated with her [Austen] of any kind are extremely rare, so I hope that a U.K. buyer comes forward so this simple but elegant ring can be saved for the nation,” Cultural Minister Ed Vaizy said.
The British government has the power to take the ring from Clarkson to judge if it will be a national treasure.
The ring was given to Austen’s sister Cassandra and stayed in the family until it was bough a year ago ABC reports.
Clarkson did agree she would sell the ring if a British buyer comes forward.
“Jane Austen placed great significance on jewelry’s link to personal relationships both in her life and in her novels. Often reflecting the characters of wearers in her novels, jewels were frequently much more than symbols of vanity and excess,” the Department of Culture said in a statement.
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