How does a cuff differ from an ordinary bracelet?

A cuff is broad (typically 3–6 cm) and usually rigidly formed - it has no clasp but is slipped over the hand and adjusts elastically to the wrist. An ordinary bracelet is narrower (0.5–2 cm) and generally fastened with a lobster clasp or box clasp. The mourning cuff was a representative, formal form of mourning jewellery - deliberately designed to be broad and visible.

Was the mourning cuff widespread in Germany?

Less so than in England and the USA. The German mourning tradition of the nineteenth century (see Mourning Rituals in the German-Speaking World) favoured narrower mourning bracelets (see Mourning Bracelet) and mourning rings (see Mourning Ring (Memorial Ring)) - the broad cuff form remained rather the exception in Germany. In English Victorian fashion and in the post-bellum mourning culture of the United States (after the Civil War), by contrast, the cuff was a documented standard piece.

Can I have a mourning cuff made today?

Yes. A few workshops worldwide make broad remembrance cuffs to commission - usually in sterling silver or a gold alloy, with engraved names or inscriptions, sometimes with an inset ash capsule or a fingerprint element. Prices lie between €600 and €4,000 depending on complexity. An alternative variant is a broad leather band with an inset silver plaque.

Mourning Cuff

A mourning cuff is a broad bangle worn at the wrist, established in the nineteenth century as a formal mourning accessory of the English and American upper class, and living on today as a wide bracelet with a relic setting or an inscription panel.

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