Collection Spotlight: Hair Wreath

There is a peculiar object that hangs above the desk in Rosamond Gibson’s bedroom. At first glance, the item appears to be a simple wreath of pressed flowers surrounding a woven circle, adhered to a paper backing and framed in gold. Upon closer inspection, however, the inner circle is actually a woven piece of gray human hair! Hair works, often made by women as a leisurely pastime, were meant to commemorate the death of a loved one or to honor a friendship.

Hair wreath, Gibson House Museum

The European tradition of human hair mementos trace their origins to the 17th and 18th centuries, usually to mark the death of a child. Pieces of hair could be pressed into lockets such as this mourning brooch to be kept as a token of remembrance.

Mourning brooch, Everhart Museum of Natural History

Hair wreaths, in particular, became popular in the nineteenth century and were an especially common custom in the Victorian era (1837-1901). Unlike our example of a hair wreath, most of these objects are entirely made of hair–each braided arrangement carefully coiled together to resemble flowers. It was also common for these wreaths to contain the hair of multiple people and could be placed around a photograph. Some of the more intricate hair

Hair wreath, c.1875. Maine State Museum

wreaths– which would have taken a lot of energy and time to complete– could be taken to jewelers or wig makers to arrange. Nineteenth century women’s magazines at the time, however, warned against taking your hair works to such places because the shops may add horse hair into the wreaths! Godey’s Lady’s Book, in particular, began in 1850 issuing monthly articles giving American women advice on how to make hair artworks, calling the practice an “elegant accomplishment.”

Courtesy of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia and Mütter Museum.

The hair wreath that we have in the Gibson House collection has the name Mary Russell written on the back of the frame, which perhaps indicates that the object commemorates Mary or comes from her personal household collection. MaryAnn Palfrey Russell (1826-1918) was a Gibson relative and lived at 72 Beacon Street. Charlie thought of her as a cousin, although technically, she was his grandmother's niece; many of her things ended up at the Gibson House, either donated or purchased from her estate sale after her death in 1918. In a wonderful surviving photo, we can see Mary sitting with Charlie Gibson in her home.

Mary Ann Palfrey Russell, Charlie Gibson, and Topsy the cat, c.1890. Courtesy of the Boston Athenaeum.

The popularity of braiding hair into jewelry or any number of creative items skyrocketed in the second half of the nineteenth century. The practice became not only a way to mourn someone who has passed, but also a way for people to stay connected to one another–in both friendly and romantic relationships. Nineteenth century American author Mark Campbell published a comprehensive guide in 1867 to making hair jewelry in his book, Self-Instructor in the Art of Hairwork, Dressing Hair, Making Curls, Switches, Braids, and Hair Jewelry of Every Description.

Campbell provides detailed diagrams and instructions on how to make all kinds of hair jewelry using a braiding table. Bracelets were an especially popular item to braid using the hair of friends and loved ones—a Victorian era friendship bracelet if you will! 

Within the Gibson House collection, we

Hair bracelet, Gibson House Museum

have one such bracelet braided out of a dark brown hair color. Little is known about who made this hair bracelet, but it is undoubtedly a part of this peculiar tradition. Campbell’s book provides some diagrams which may match the patterns of the Gibson’s hair bracelet.

Whether or not you find this tradition cool…or a bit creepy… it exists as a fascinating window into the lives and sentiments of the Victorian people. Before you judge this nineteenth century custom, there still exists today a desire to hold onto this…hairy type of memorial. There is a current market for animal hair jewelry to commemorate the loss of a beloved pet.

Pet hair jewelery, Etsy.com

As we can see today, although not as widely common, traces of this nineteenth century hair jewelry custom remain!

- Iso Partee, Curatorial Intern (Spring 2024)

To Learn More:

• Christiane Holm, “Sentimental Cuts: Eighteenth-Century Mourning Jewelry with Hair,” Eighteenth-Century Studies 38, no. 1 (2004): 139–43.
• Deborah Lutz, “THE DEAD STILL AMONG US: VICTORIAN SECULAR RELICS, HAIR JEWELRY, AND DEATH CULTURE,” Victorian Literature and Culture 39, no. 1 (2011): 127–42.
• “Hair Wreaths - Sentimental or Spooky?” Maine State Museum, February 5, 2021.
• Pet Hair jewelry
• Smithsonian Magazine, “Victorians Made Jewelry out of Human Hair,” December 24, 2013.
• The curious victorian tradition of making art from human hair
• Virginia L. Rahm, “MHS Collections: Human Hair Ornaments,” Minnesota History 44, no. 2 (1974): 70–74.