Memorial for Eugénie Berset

This memorial was most likely made by the grieving mother of Eugénie Berset. By 1860 it had become popular for the lady of the house to make large hairwork pieces that could be prominently displayed. These homemade works were considered to be imbued with true emotional integrity as the untrained women painstakingly created intricate decorations.

The woman who made this created a three-dimensional scene. All of the main details are on glass in front of a background painted on ivory. The woman and tombstone are painted with watercolor; while pulverized hair was mixed in the paint for the textured ground. The final layer is the willow tree and forget-me-nots made of hair. These were created using goldbeater’s skin, which is made from the outer membrane of ox intestines. Hair was flattened on skin lined with gum to make a sheet of hair that could be cut into shapes.