Nowadays, the idea of "mourning jewelry" seems like a contradiction. If the aim of mourning is to present a somber, plain appearance, wouldn't any sort of decorative accessory seem inappropriate, smacking of worldly vanity on the bereaved's part? But more than a hundred years ago, no well-dressed person would have considered his or her mourning outfit complete without a piece - or preferably several pieces - of special jewelry. "A few trinkets must be worn, if only to accentuate the general sombreness of the costume," stated an 1892 article on mourning in The Queen, a British society and fashion magazine.
Hairy Memories
Along with accentuating somberness, mourning jewelry was a way of keeping the dear departed near you - literally. It was quite common for these pieces to include a lock of the deceased's hair. Traditionally, the hair would appear under glass, neatly braided in a locket, ring, or pin. But the 1830s saw the beginning of a mania for pieces actually made of hair.
Steamed and plaited strands were stuffed into tubes of open metalwork and shaped into bow pins, watch chains, and necklaces, which fastened with metal clasps (made of gold for the rich and pinchbeck for the poor in early pieces, rolled gold was used later). Usually a professional jeweler, one who specialized in mourning jewelry, did the work. But if you wanted to be sure your loved one's locks were being used - some unscrupulous craftsmen were known to substitute horsehair - magazines such as The Godey's Lady's Book published articles on making your own hair jewelry.
Hair had another use as well, it could be dried, ground up, and mixed with water, creating an inky liquid. This ink would then be used to write inscriptions and paint woeful scenes on the enameled surface of a ring or pendant. A typical scene might depict a landscape full of weeping willows, or a nymph drooping sadly beside an urn or monument.
Mania For Mourning
Such images were especially common in the first generation of mourning jewelry, which dates from the mid-18th century. Memorial or commemorative pieces weren't unknown before then; people had been wearing articles with loved ones' initials and hair since the late 1600s. But it was the burgeoning development of ready-made lockets, brooches or rings with standardized designs - which could be engraved or otherwise customized - that popularized the idea of pieces especially made for mourning.
And the concept really took off in the Victorian era, with its elaborate, rigid rituals for everything. Queen Victoria's prolonged mourning for her husband, Prince Albert (which began in 1861 and continued for decades) set an ideological example. And the increasing mass-production of jewelry made it possible for almost anyone to purchase a piece or two.
Any Color You Like, As Long As It's Black
Any and every type of jewelry could be turned into a macabre bauble. Rings, which were worn by both sexes, were often given out to attendees at funerals. Men wore watch chains, fobs, tie pins and belt buckles. Women wore bracelets, necklaces, round or oval pins, earrings, even tiaras. Especially popular in the mid-19th century were swivel brooches, which revolved back and front. One side would contain strands of the loved one's hair, the other, a miniature likeness - a painting or perhaps one of those new-fangled photographs.
Since the forms were familiar, mourning jewelry was distinguished primarily by the materials used to make it. No brightly colored stones could be used, of course - black (or very dark blue or brown) was the only acceptable hue, perhaps lightened with neutral white and gray if the deceased had been a child. The most desirable - and expensive - material was jet, a fossilized wood (like coal). Light and easy to carve, jet was an ideal material to make the large, intricate pieces that became fashionable from 1850 onwards. Other popular materials were black onyx and dark tortoiseshell.
Cheaper substitutes for jet included black glass (known as "French jet"), cast iron and vulcanite, a sort of hardened rubber. Common motifs included crosses, anchors (which symbolized steadfast faith) and a hand holding a yew branch or flower. Pearls, which symbolized tears, were the most common accents.
Worn For Life
As with mourning clothes, different stages of mourning jewelry existed. For the initial phase of deep mourning, materials had to be dull or opaque. In the later "secondary mourning" (i.e., less strict) period, when the bereaved were allowed to wear dark purple or gray, pieces could be faceted - cut steel was a good option, with its relatively discreet glitter - or polished to a high sheen.
Although many people eventually put their mourning clothes aside, they often continued to wear their mourning jewelry for the rest of their lives.