Jewellery commemorating the death of an individual dates back to the seventeenth century. These rings and brooches, often featuring braided hair, initials and small portraits, were a progression from sixteenth century memento mori (remember that you must die) jewellery and even earlier protective charms such as relics of saints and stones with magical powers.
When Queen Victoria’s beloved husband Albert died in 1861, the art of mourning and the jewellery that went with it was taken to a new level. The Queen was inconsolable and plunged into full mourning for the rest of her life. Her people took up her strict rules of dress and the manufacturers of the industrial age supplied the demand. Jewellery made from jet, onyx and black enamel was worn during full mourning (the first year and a half after a death) with hair, cut-steel, berlin ironwork, ivory and tortoiseshell being worn in the later stages. The Edwardian age saw a dwindling of this fervour for death and mourning and the World Wars killed it. So many deaths, so suddenly, perhaps lead to our cultures current preoccupation with ignoring this very inevitable event and our clinging to the rosy days of childhood.
The images show mourning rings made of gold inset with braided human hair, and silver with enamel. Additional images from (Luthi, Annn Louise, Sentimental Jewellery.Buckinghamshire:Shire, 1998)
Jewellery commemorating the death of an individual dates back to the seventeenth century. These rings and brooches, often featuring braided hair, initials and small portraits. semi precious necklaces
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