Two Loops and a Line, Victorian Mounted Hair Samples "Drawing", 1867, with Verse on Reverse collectible button There is an incised vine

There is an incised vine pattern running up the sides of the black handle

especially when self-descriptive

11 3/4" x 8 1/8

Feels quite like a portrait of a specific relationship

I’ve always got an eye out for very believably bruised pieces

Two Loops and a Line, Victorian Mounted Hair Samples "Drawing", 1867, with Verse on Reverse collectible button There is an incised vineOne more from a small collection of hair locks and wreaths dating to the 1860s all stitched to, or tucked into, bits of paper annotated with names and notes. I considered listing them as a collection, but realized much of what I find especially beautiful about these is their specificity and singularity in terms of form and content (color, composition, and in this case very much the handwritten names and notes) and so have treated them as individual