What form did Victorian mourning earrings take?

Three dominant forms are documented. Long drops - long, freely swinging ear pendants of jet, vulcanite or black-enamelled gold (5–8 cm in length). Cluster studs - small studs sitting close to the ear, of carved jet, often in the form of a flower or a bunch of grapes. Pendant hoops - narrow hoops with a central mourning symbol (cross, anchor, weeping willow). The long-drop variant dominated at the height of the fashion (1860–1880).

Are mourning earrings still worn today?

In the Victorian sense - as a black, visible statement of mourning - hardly at all. In the sense of discreet remembrance earrings - very much so. Today there are small studs of onyx or freshwater pearl, discreet hoops with a tiny ash element or fingerprint detail (see Ash Pendant, Fingerprint Pendant) and plain gold studs with engraved initials.

Which materials are suitable today?

For a discreet way of wearing a keepsake, onyx, black spinel, freshwater pearl, matt gold and sterling silver are all suitable. Where a historical character is wanted: antique jet from Whitby (see Whitby - Jet Workshops on the Yorkshire Coast) or bog oak (see Bog Oak) - neither still actively worked, but available as collectors' pieces. Vulcanite (see Vulcanite (Ebonite)) is well known as a historical material, but tends to discolour and is not really to be recommended for modern pieces.

Mourning Earrings

Mourning earrings are matt black or muted pieces of ear jewellery which in the nineteenth century were an obligatory component of the female mourning toilette, and which live on today as a discreet remembrance variant with a tiny relic setting.

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