" Narya, also named the Ring of Fire or Red Ring, is one of the Three Rings. According to Unfinished Tales, at the start of the War of the Elves and Sauron, Celebrimbor gave Narya together with the Ring Vilya to Gil-galad, High King of the Noldor. Gil-galad entrusted Narya to his lieutenant , Lord of the Havens of Mithlond, who kept it after Gil-galad's death. According to The Lord of the RingsGandalf's true nature as one of the Maiar from Valinor, gave him the ring to aid him in his labours. It is described as having the power to inspire others to resist tyranny, domination, and despair (in other words, evoking hope from others around the wielder), as well as giving resistance to the weariness of time: "Take now this Ring," he said; "for thy labours and thy cares will be heavy, but in all it will support thee and defend thee from weariness. For this is the Ring of Fire, and herewith, maybe, thou shalt rekindle hearts to the valour of old in a world that grows chill"Grey Havens. It was a gold ring adorned with a red ruby." (Wikipedia)
Gotta love Wikipedia... and judging by the veracity of the fanbase, I would suppose this is pretty accurate in terms of Tolkeins story. But isn't it amazing how much depth the story has around even a small bit in the grander scheme of things. Tolkein really had a complex vision when he wrote his collection of storys on middle earth.
Though Gandalfs immortality is not due to the ring, but because he is one of the 'maiar' a race that sauron himself once belonged to before he was corrupted.
