Costume – Art of Mourning

Mourning Jewels: How They Were Worn, Part 2

c.1861 Photograph of Princess Alice, standing while resting her left elbow on some books piled on a console table with a mirror reflecting the left side of her head and her left hand. Princess Alice became engaged to Prince Louis of Hesse on 30 November 1860; their marriage took place in July 1862, having been postponed because of the death of the Prince Consort in December 1861. The Princess is wearing mourning in this photograph for her grandmother, the Duchess of Kent, who had died four months previously. Provenance Acquired by Queen Victoria

The wearing of 18th century mourning jewellery set the template for numerous revivals through to the 20th century. The 19th century was the catalyst to popularise the mourning industry so much so that it created its own industry and became a part of popular fashion. Much of our modern understanding of Western religious and social ceremony comes from these periods, expanding… Continue reading Mourning Jewels: How They Were Worn, Part 2

Mourning Jewels: How They Were Worn, Part 1

Full-length portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-87), standing in mourning costume, with the Royal Arms of Scotland behind; she holds a crucifix in her right hand, a prayer-book in her left, and wears a cross and rosary; behind her are her two ladies; left a scene of her execution

A question as simple as ‘how was a jewel worn?’ leads to the most complex of answers. The narrative of mourning and sentimental jewellery in the modern age is intrinsically interwoven with the growth of industry and newfound access to wealth , along with the emergence of newly-mobile social class. Fashion is rarely, if ever, adopted arbitrarily. The purpose… Continue reading Mourning Jewels: How They Were Worn, Part 1

Children in Mourning

The Tolling Bell

A child in mourning is the ultimate symbol of family grief. The child is what carries forward a memory and validates the parent’s existence, so it is with great grief that the loss of a child could be worn as a jewel or in fashion. In the reverse of this, a child in mourning for… Continue reading Children in Mourning

Butterfly Symbols and 19th Century Jewellery

“Henry James Esqr died /13th Nov 1839 in his 80th Year”

As with all symbols, there aren’t simple explanations for them when they transcend one culture or time. Organic symbols have lasted as long as cultures have written history, making them adapt. With the various classical revivals, symbols have become resurrected in Western culture time and time again to take on a homogenous understanding of what… Continue reading Butterfly Symbols and 19th Century Jewellery