Medieval and Renaissance jewellery often combined religious and secular imagery. The bezel of this ring is crudely engraved with the letters IHS. This is a Christogram based on the first three letters of the name Jesus in Greek. This abbreviation was given particular prominence from the 15th century by the Franciscan preacher Saint Bernadino of Siena. He persuaded warring Italian city states to lay down their arms and replace them with banners bearing the letters IHS. It could also be understood as the name 'Iesus Hominum Salvator' (Jesus the Saviour of Mankind'). Wearing a ring with Christian symbols was an outward sign of faith and allowed the wearer to incorporate their religious devotions into daily life. The letters are set in a heart shape which could refer to the Sacred Heart of Christ, a symbol of Christ's humanity and the wounds he suffered. The heart shaped bezel may refer to earthly love as well as religious and the ring perhaps been given as a love token.

This ring forms part of a collection of 760 rings and engraved gems from the collection of Edmund Waterton (1830-87). Waterton was one of the foremost ring collectors of the nineteenth century and was the author of several articles on rings, a book on English devotion to the Virgin Mary and an unfinished catalogue of his collection (the manuscript is now the National Art Library). Waterton was noted for his extravagance and financial troubles caused him to place his collection in pawn with the London jeweller Robert Phillips. When he was unable to repay the loan, Phillips offered to sell the collection to the Museum and it was acquired in 1871. A small group of rings which Waterton had held back were acquired in 1899.