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. In the later 18th century, rings followed neo-classical designs, their oval bezels were 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.

The inscription on this ring tells us that it was made to commemorate Lady Mawbey who died in August 1790 at the age of 45. Lady Mawbey was born Elizabeth Pratt, the daughter and later heiress of Richard Pratt, the owner of a malt distillery and vinegar manufactory in Vauxhall, London. She married her cousin Sir Joseph Mawbey, who had been taken on as her father's partner in the distillery, in August 1760 and bore nine children, four of whom were alive at her death. Sir Joseph, who died in 1798, became member of Parliament for Southwark and was created a baronet in 1765. He was the author of various publications, including a history of the French Revolution. He had a poem memorialising his wife printed in The Gentleman's Magazine of 1790 which was also added to her funeral monument in Chertsey Church, Surrey.

The poem reads:

Dame Elizabeth Mawbey,
Wife of Sir Joseph Mawbey, Bart.
Of Botleys, in this Parish,
After sustaining a long and painful illness,
With the greatest fortitude and resignation
Died on the 19th of August, 1790
In the 46th year of her age.

'Why weep for me?' the blameless woman said,
'We all must die and I am not afraid;
No good to me affords or sigh or tear,
I have done no wrong and therefore cannot fear;
Good works and truth shall cheer life's parting scene,
For virtue only makes the mind serene,
Yes, we must part! The conflict now is o'er,
And husband, children, friends in vain deplore!
But ah! Blest saint! to all around impart
Thy settled goodness, thy unerring heart,
Which bade thee shine in every state of life
As Daughter, Maiden, Parent, Friend and Wife!

The church also includes memorials for Sir Joseph and their son Pratt Mawbey, who died at the age of eight.