Ring (finger) (Mourning ring)

Description

An enameled mourning ring dated 1809 commemorating Elizabeth Temple (Lady Temple) of Boston, Massachusetts, carries forward the simple neoclassical mourning band tradition well into the early nineteenth century. It consists of a plain gold straight band, a black enamel ground, a stylized palm leaf, and gold text in upper-case lettering. The gold text reads “DOWAGER.ELIZABETH.LADY.TEMPLE[.]” The interior is engraved: “Oc/t 25th Oct/r 1809 Aet. 59.” The interior curve to the narrow band was a trait popular during the mid-eighteenth century. It appears that the style of this ring appealed to the elite Anglo-American circles of Boston and its surrounding areas well into the nineteenth century. Several similar bands (commemorating different individuals) are in several New England collections.