Haunting Keepsakes: Strange Mourning Tokens from the Past

Would you ever keep a photo of a loved one taken after they died? Or wear a bracelet made from their hair?

In this episode of Spirit Speakeasy, we’re exploring some of the most haunting—and surprisingly heartfelt—mourning practices from the past.

From Victorian post-mortem photography and death masks, to hair jewelry and family hair wreaths displayed in living rooms, these tangible tokens of grief may seem strange by today’s standards… but they once carried deep spiritual, emotional, and cultural meaning.

💀 You’ll learn about:
— Why photographing the dead was once considered an act of love
— How human hair became a powerful symbol of remembrance
— What death masks revealed (and preserved)
— The oddly beautiful tradition of hanging woven hair art in the home
— How these forgotten practices might help us better understand grief today

✨ Whether you find them creepy, beautiful, or both… these keepsakes remind us that grief has always found a way to take shape.

Show Notes:

Select Sources & Further Reading

Photography:
• The Burns Archive – Historical post-mortem photography
https://www.burnsarchive.com

Mourning Jewelry & Hair Art:
• Relics of Death in Victorian Literature and Culture – Deborah Lutz
• V&A Museum – Mourning Jewelry Collection
https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/mourning-jewellery
• National Museum of Funeral History
https://www.nmfh.org
• Strange Remains – “The Hairy Art of Victorian Mourning Jewelry”
https://www.strangeremains.com/?p=1016

Death Masks:
• Britannica – “Death mask”
https://www.britannica.com/art/death-mask
• Atlas Obscura – “Why Death Masks Were Once All the Rage”
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/death-masks

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