Hair Wreath
ClassificationsClothing and Adornments-wreaths
Date1880
Made AtKansas, United States, North America
MediumHair, wire and beads
Credit LineGift of Emery P. Chace and Elsie Chace
Object number37002
DescriptionThis hair weaving was made from the hair of as many as five sisters sometime in the late 19th century. It’s a framed hair wreath, woven in floral designs with added beads and wire from 1880. The frame has since been removed and disposed of due to poor condition. The donor Elsie Chace inherited it from her grandmother, Mrs. R.E. Lyon of Ontario, California. It was made by Mrs. Lyon's sister, Mrs. Diantha M. Van Leuven of Sedan, Kansas. Mrs. Lyon received the wreath from her sister in the late 1890s. Mrs. Chace thinks it probable that the wreath includes hair of her grandmother (Mrs. Lyon), Mrs. Diantha M. Van Leuven, and their three other sisters. Lyon & Van Leuven (nee Griffith) were two of a family of five sisters originally of Gaysville, Vermont. Wreathing with human hair and other human hair jewelry was primarily done to memorialize the recently deceased. Popular etiquette guides at the time outlined the dos and don’ts of working with hair, including proper braiding techniques.On View
Not on viewCollections
1925
1870-1911
c. 1915
