Early Victorian mourning ring with pearls and a hair inlay, in gold

When a piece of jewellery reveals the occasion for which it was created through an engraved date, it’s always a particularly moving moment—even if the original occasion was perhaps a painful one. In the case of this ring, it was the passing of a beloved relative in 1838 that led to its creation. This piece of jewellery from the Early Victorian era features shimmering natural pearls set in gold as a symbol of mourning, framing a rectangular compartment sealed with glass. Within this compartment, several artfully braided strands of hair have been preserved over the generations. It is the hair of the deceased, whom this ring was meant to commemorate. Engraved on the back of the ring is the name M.A. Vetty, who died on April 6, 1838, at the age of only seventeen. Who might this person have been? She must have been endearing, and her loss must have been painful; otherwise, this wonderful ring would never have been created—and we would no longer remember her today, nearly 200 years after her death. The ring came to us from the south of England.

Estimate:£1,265.65

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