From the early seventeenth to the end of the nineteenth century, testators left money in their wills to have rings with commemorative inscriptions made and distributed to their friends and families. Simple bands enamelled with the name and life dates of the deceased were frequently made, sometimes set with a gemstone or a bezel set with a rock crystal covering a symbol such as a coffin or initials in gold wire. In the later 18th century, rings followed neo-classical designs, their oval bezels often decorated with the same designs as funerary monuments such as urns, broken pillars and mourning figures. Hair from the deceased was incorporated into the designs or set in a compartment at the back of the ring to give each jewel a uniquely personal element. Black or white enamel were favoured though white enamel was often, though not universally used to commemorate children and unmarried adults. By the end of the 19th century, memorial ring designs were becoming more standardised. The hoops were often inscribed with phrases such as 'In memory' whilst a commemorative inscription could be added to the inside of the hoop. The custom of giving rings as memorials gradually declined in the early 20th century, although the Goldsmiths Journal suggests that some were still being sold in the 1930s.

This ring commemorates Barbara Towneley (born Dicconson) who died on 25 December 1797 at the age of 66. She was born around 1731 and married John Towneley in 1756. The Towneleys were a distinguished Catholic Lancashire family. John Towneley (1731-1813) was a collector of antiquarian books, a Trustee of the British Museum and a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. His nephew Charles Towneley was a collector of classical statuary, including the Towneley Venus and Discobolus. John's great uncle Francis Towneley was implicated in the uprising of 1745 and executed as a Jacobite.

They had a daughter, Barbara, born in 1758, who married Sir William Stanley and a son named Peregrine Edward . He was born on 10 October 1762 at Corney House, Chiswick. He married Charlotte Drummond in 1794. He was elected as a fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1812. In 1814 he sold his father's book collection to fund improvements to the Hall, for which he employed the services of the architect Jeffry Wyattville. Around 1817, he donated land and £1000 to build the town's first catholic chapel since the catholic emancipation. Following the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, he became High Sheriff of Lancashire in 1831.