Summary of The History & Origins of Victorian Mourning Jewelry

The History & Origins of Victorian Mourning Jewelry

The video explores the significance and evolution of mourning jewelry, particularly during the Victorian era. Mourning jewelry is defined as jewelry that commemorates the dead, which became popular in the 19th century as a way to express personal loss. The video discusses various artistic techniques, concepts, and historical contexts surrounding this form of jewelry.

Key Concepts and Artistic Techniques:

Memento Mori: A Latin phrase meaning "remember you will die," which served as a reminder of mortality and influenced the design of jewelry.
Symbolism: Common symbols included skulls, hourglasses, and flowers, representing the transient nature of life.
Hair Jewelry: Locks of hair were often incorporated into mourning pieces, serving as tangible memories of the deceased.
Jet: A popular material for mourning jewelry, Jet is fossilized wood that was lightweight and easy to carve, often used in somber designs.
Post-Mortem Photography: This practice involved taking photographs of deceased individuals, which were sometimes incorporated into mourning jewelry.

Steps and Materials in Mourning Jewelry Creation:

Incorporating Personal Tokens: Mourning jewelry often included initials, portraits, or locks of hair to personalize the piece.
Design Variations: Jewelry evolved from overt Memento Mori symbols to more subtle expressions of grief, such as rings with names and dates of the deceased.
Materials Used: Common materials included Jet, hair, gold, and enamel, often crafted into intricate designs.

Cultural Shifts:

The video highlights how mourning jewelry reflected societal attitudes towards death, evolving from direct reminders of mortality to more sentimental expressions of love and loss. The Victorian era saw a peak in mourning practices, influenced heavily by Queen Victoria's prolonged mourning for her husband, Albert. By the early 20th century, the approach to mourning changed significantly, leading to a decline in the popularity of mourning jewelry as societal norms shifted towards less public displays of grief.

Contributors:

The video features a creator known as "sass," who presents the content in an engaging and informative manner, drawing connections between historical practices and contemporary attitudes toward death and mourning.

Notable Quotes

— 01:46 — « Instead of saying things like teamwork makes the dream work, they said things like remember to die. »

— 02:11 — « If you can accept this, then you accept that life is fleeting, that material possessions are not important, and whether you're king or pauper, in the end, we're all gonna just be disgusting skeletons. »

— 04:30 — « The point of memento mori is not just remember you will die, but remember you will die because you want your soul to be in a constant state of grace. »

— 10:37 — « It seems a little much; you're already dealing with this great tragedy and then you're like, 'I don't have the right dress!' »

— 26:45 — « Are you really that sad, or are you just figuring out loopholes at this point? »