Elmhurst museum exhibits Chicago sports championship rings

ELMHURST, Ill. (WLS) -- A new exhibit at the Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art in Elmhurst features championship sports rings. Open Tuesday and running through April 19, the famous rings from famous years are highlighted in a tribute to all those "wait 'til next year" dreams that really did come true.

The Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary opened in 1962, and since then the first question most visitors ask is, "What is lapidary art?"

"Lapidary art is the art of cutting and polishing stones," explains Dorothy Asher, director of the museum. "So here at the museum we have many hardstone carvings from around the world."

The Lizzadro Museum isthe largest museum dedicated to lapidary art in North America, and features works of art carved by hand from hard gemstones. The late Joe Lizzadro was an Italian immigrant who became an extremely successful businessman, and lapidary art was his pleasure.

"This was his hobby," Asher says. "He loved to cut and polish stone. And he began to collect in the late 1930's."

It's a collection of carved minerals and gemstones, and features a lot of jade. And now a new part of the exhibit they have gone from jade to Jordan -- Michael Jordan.

"We have 11 rings on display from the Blackhawks, the Bears, the Bulls, the White Sox and we're missing only one," Asher says. "The Cubs."

The rings go back to 1961 and Stan Mikita and his Stanley Cup ring, when the rings were as humble as the athletes themselves. Mikita has three of them.

"He remained an ambassador for the Blackhawks and so he received a ring for 2010 and 2013," Asher explains.

Walter payton's ring from 1985 has perhaps the most interesting story. Walter won it, wore it and then lost it.

"Walter Payton's ring was lost in a couch in 1995," Asher says. "The couch was sold and went to a student at U of I. The student found the ring in the couch in 2001 and it was returned to his family."

The White Sox World Series ring is on loan from Sox executive Chuck Walsh. The Bulls' rings belong to Joe O'Neil of the Bulls front office. Soon, there could be even more.