Human history is a funny contradiction. Everything about our culture and how we behave as a species changes all the time, as new technology comes through and old customs pass into record.
But somehow, simultaneously, there are a few constants to our behavior that seemingly never change, forming the bedrock of what it means to be human. Most of these qualities revolve around love.
We pursue it against all odds, like this young couple with Down syndrome who worked so hard to find one another. We fight for it in even the direst of circumstances.
And when those we love pass on, we mourn their passing with all the strength of our emotions.
In fact, it's interesting to note that mourning has evolved into a unique culture of its own, peculiar to those who are going through the grieving process.
Today, it’s marked by funerals, wakes, and eulogies — all the symbolic rituals that help us to say goodbye to our loved ones.
But in the past, some people expressed their grief in very unique ways, as these beautiful pieces of "mourning jewelry" demonstrate.
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For the Victorians, dealing with death and grief took on a slightly different significance.
Perhaps one of the best-known examples of this can be found in the Victorian fascination with keeping physical relics of their deceased loved ones, in the form of a darkly beautiful form of jewelry.
Relic-keeping is a human tradition that goes back into the foggy recesses of recorded history. It’s a bit macabre, but people have often held on to the hair, teeth, and bones in order to remember those who have passed on.
The Victorians made a point of adding a dose of much-needed refinement to the tradition, by converting relics — usually hair — into pieces of jewelry.
Not unlike lockets, these pieces of jewelry often preserved locks of a loved one's hair behind glass, or woven into the framework of the jewelry.
As displayed in this set of earrings and brooch made of hair, Victorians made an art form of elaborately plaiting and weaving the hair into designs that served to better showcase the memento mori — the Latin expression that means "Remember that you must die."
Some even chose to forgo the protective frameworks, in favor of purely plaited jewelry like this unusual pair of woven earrings.
From a modern perspective, the practice might seem a little bit creepy, but for the Victorians, it was a meaningful way to hold onto those who went before, and bring peace to those in mourning.
At the end of the day, it’s not how you mourn that matters, just that it helps with the healing process.
And if you were totally fascinated by these pieces of macabre jewelry, don’t forget to SHARE on Facebook!
