Memorial jewellery is jewellery made to keep someone who has died close: a ring holding a lock of hair, a pendant sealed with cremation ashes, a charm engraved with a fingerprint. It is one of the oldest jobs jewellery has ever done, and one of the fastest-growing corners of the trade today.
This guide traces memorial jewellery from medieval memento mori rings to Victorian jet and hairwork, then walks through the modern forms families choose now. It profiles a contemporary maker, Sugarberry Memorials of Las Vegas, and closes with practical advice on choosing a maker, caring for a piece and what to expect to pay.
Whether you are grieving, buying for someone who is, or a jeweller thinking about offering memorial work, the aim is the same: to explain what these pieces are, where they came from and how to choose one well.
A short history of memorial jewellery
People have worn jewellery for the dead for at least 600 years. The forms changed with religion, fashion and technology, but the impulse stayed the same: to carry a person, or a reminder of them, on the body.
Memento mori: “remember you must die”
The earliest mourning jewels were less about one person than about death itself. Medieval and Tudor memento mori pieces used skulls, skeletons, coffins and hourglasses to remind the wearer to live a moral life. GIA describes an English pendant of about 1540 that pairs a mortal image with an inscription about the resurrection.
The imagery could be startlingly literal. A 17th-century English gold ring in the British Museum has a hoop formed of two white-enamelled skeletons holding up a tiny coffin. Lift the coffin’s lid and a miniature skeleton lies inside.
Stuart crystal and the death of a king
The execution of Charles I in 1649 gave mourning jewellery a political edge. Royalists who could not safely show loyalty in public wore discreet rings and slides bearing the king’s initials, a crown or his portrait, often under a faceted rock crystal. Fellows auctioneers notes that these “Stuart crystal” pieces doubled as love tokens and wedding jewellery, and stayed popular into the 18th century.
Georgian mourning rings
From the reign of Charles II (1660 to 1685), mourning jewellery became an established custom. According to Chiswick Auctions, upper-class families in the 18th century often set aside money in their wills for rings to be made and given to mourners.
By the mid-1700s the skulls gave way to softer, sentimental scenes: urns, weeping willows and grieving maidens painted on ivory or vellum under glass. A code of colour developed too. Black enamel marked the death of a married person, while white enamel marked a child or someone unmarried. Broken columns stood for a life cut short and pearls for tears.
The custom crossed the Atlantic. The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds a gold ring made in New York around 1733 for Catherine De Peyster, with a coffin-shaped glass bezel over a lock of hair. The Massachusetts Historical Society shows colonial rings decorated with winged death’s heads, including one from 1761 finished by Paul Revere.
The Victorian peak
Mourning jewellery reached its height in the Victorian era (1837 to 1901), and one death drove it. When Prince Albert died in 1861, Queen Victoria wore black and mourning jewels for much of the rest of her life. The court, the aristocracy and then the growing middle class followed her lead.
Three materials defined the period:
- Whitby jet. Fossilised driftwood around 183 million years old, polished to a mirror-black shine. Between 1860 and 1880, the [Whitby Museum](https://www.whitbymuseum.org.uk/collections/jet/) records more than 200 jet workshops employing about 1,500 people, fed by around 300 mines. When genuine jet ran short, cheaper bog oak, vulcanite and gutta-percha imitated it.
- Onyx and black enamel. A mourning locket of 1871 at the V&A frames diamond-set initials in black and white onyx, with glazed compartments for hair. The museum notes that Queen Victoria ordered onyx mourning pieces after Albert’s death.
- Human hair. Victorians believed hair held something of the person’s essence, and its durability suggested immortality. Hair was braided into watch chains and bracelets or laid into lockets. By the mid-1800s, England imported around 50 tons of hair a year to meet demand, according to GIA.
Decline and quiet survival
Interest fell away after Queen Victoria’s death in 1901, with a brief revival after the Titanic sank in 1912. Two world wars, with their scale of loss, made elaborate public mourning feel out of step. Memorial jewellery did not disappear, though. It shrank to the private locket with a photograph inside, the engraved ring, the inherited brooch. That private, personal form is exactly what returned at the end of the 20th century.
Memorial jewellery today: the main types
The biggest single driver of modern memorial jewellery is cremation. In the United States, the National Funeral Directors Association projects a 2025 cremation rate of 63.4%, more than double the burial rate. In Britain it is higher still: the Cremation Society records provisional figures of 80.25% of deaths ending in cremation in 2024. Ashes are portable and divisible, so families now have something physical to carry in a way earlier generations rarely did.
Cremation ash jewellery
This is the largest category. There are two broad approaches:
- Urn or vessel pendants. A small sealed chamber, often behind a screw cap, holds a pinch of ashes. They are simple and affordable, and the ashes stay loose.
- Inclusion jewellery. The ashes are mixed with resin or glass and permanently set into the piece, often under a gemstone or as a coloured inlay. The ashes become visible as part of the design.
Memorial diamonds
At the top end, carbon extracted from ashes or hair can be grown into a laboratory diamond. National Geographic describes the Swiss company Algordanza converting the carbon to graphite, then pressing it at about 2,400°F and 870,000 psi. The process took five to eight months, and packages started at about $3,000 when the article was written in 2019. The Cremation Institute advises getting written quotes from several labs, since size and colour drive the price.
Fingerprint and handwriting jewellery
A fingerprint is perhaps the most personal mark a person leaves. Many funeral directors will take a print on request, and families also work from ink or graphite prints taken at home. A guide from Funeral.com explains that makers turn the print into a clean line file, then laser-engrave, deep-engrave or cast it. Handwriting, a signature or a line from a card is reproduced in the same way.
Hair, fabric, soil and flowers
The Victorian hair locket never really went away. Modern makers seal hair, a scrap of a favourite shirt, soil from a grave or garden, or petals from funeral flowers into resin settings. These are a good option when there are no ashes, for example after a burial.
Breast milk and life-event keepsakes
The same preservation techniques are used for happier milestones. Breast milk, a baby’s first curl and umbilical cord stumps are now set into rings and pendants. Some makers offer both. The Yorkshire Post profiled a Leeds jeweller who began making breast milk pieces after a customer asked to combine milk with a loved one’s ashes.
Pet memorial jewellery
Pets are family, and many memorial makers now offer ash, fur and paw-print pieces for animals using the same methods.
Featured maker: Sugarberry Memorials, Las Vegas
Sugarberry Memorials is a Las Vegas studio making handmade cremation jewellery for families across the United States. It is a good example of how memorial jewellery has moved from mass-produced urn pendants to fine, custom pieces in precious metals.
A business born from loss
Founder Kayce Jones began making jewellery by hand at her kitchen table in 2011, and the hobby grew into an Etsy shop. The memorial work began after a personal loss: according to the company’s own story, Kayce and her husband Jeff lost their daughter Mercy when Kayce was 16 weeks pregnant. The Story Exchange reported in 2024 that she channelled that grief into her first cremation piece, and that the family moved from San Diego to Las Vegas after the pandemic hit their finances.
Today Kayce designs the pieces and runs the studio, while Jeff handles technology and logistics. “We forge deep, personal connections with our clients,” she told The Story Exchange. “I believe the quality of what I am producing is setting a new standard in a relatively new industry.”
What they make
Sugarberry’s range covers cremation rings, necklaces, bracelets, men’s pieces and pet memorial jewellery. Ashes are permanently set in chambers beneath the stones rather than held loose. Families can also send hair, fur, fabric, soil, flower petals or unity sand. The studio’s Jewelers of America listing adds breast milk keepsakes and engraving, and confirms membership of the US trade body.
Materials go well beyond the typical memorial pendant:
- Metals: sterling silver, solid 10k, 14k and 18k gold, platinum and 316L surgical steel.
- Stones: lab-grown diamond, moissanite, sapphire, ruby, emerald, alexandrite and cubic zirconia.
- Finishes: natural ash, pearl shimmer, glitter, crushed granite, UV-reactive colour and crushed opal in 78 colours.
The colour guide starts with a thoughtful question: how much of the ashes do you want to see? Flat-backed portrait and rose cuts show the ashes clearly, while moissanite hides them almost entirely within its sparkle.
How ordering works
The process, set out on the Before You Order page, is designed to be gentle and clear:
- Place the order online and confirm you have the ashes in hand.
- A collection kit with a prepaid return envelope arrives, usually shipped the same or next day.
- Send about one teaspoon of ashes for every five pieces.
- Track progress on an intake spreadsheet and a private Facebook group.
- Receive the finished piece, typically 12 weeks after the ashes arrive. Unused ashes are returned, or scattered in the Pacific near San Diego if you prefer.
On the shop pages we checked in October 2026, resin pendants started at $98, rings at about $264, and the Genesis necklace reached $568. The company’s reviews page shows more than 18,000 Etsy reviews averaging five stars.
How to choose a memorial jeweller
A memorial piece is bought once, at a hard time, and meant to last a lifetime. These questions separate careful makers from the rest.
What will the piece hold?
Start with what you have. Ashes open up the widest choice. Hair, fabric, soil or flowers suit families whose loved one was buried. A fingerprint or handwriting needs nothing physical at all and can be added to any engraved piece. If you have very little ash, ask how much the maker needs. Some work with a teaspoon for several pieces.
Is the inclusion sealed for good?
Loose-ash urn pendants can leak if the cap loosens. Inclusion pieces, where the ashes are set in resin or glass under a stone, are permanent. Ask the maker exactly how the ashes are sealed, and whether a piece can be repaired or resized later without disturbing them.
Is the metal what it claims to be?
Memorial jewellery is still jewellery, so the usual rules apply. In the UK, gold over 1 g and silver over 7.78 g must be hallmarked by an Assay Office before sale, as Business Companion explains for trading standards. In the US, the FTC Jewelry Guides require sellers to describe metal content and lab-created stones truthfully. Be wary of “gold tone” or plated pieces sold at solid gold prices.
How will the ashes travel and come back?
Ask how ashes are shipped, who handles them and what happens to any you do not use. A good maker sends a proper kit and returns the remainder by default. In the US, cremated remains must be sent by mail following USPS Publication 139. For other countries, check local rules before posting ashes abroad.
Can you see real work and real reviews?
Look for photographs of finished customer pieces, not just studio renders, and for reviews on independent platforms. Membership of a trade body such as Jewelers of America in the US, or the National Association of Jewellers in the UK, is a useful extra signal.
Is the timeline realistic?
Handmade inclusion jewellery commonly takes eight to twelve weeks. Memorial diamonds take months. If you need something for a funeral or anniversary, say so at the start.
Cost, care and etiquette
What does memorial jewellery cost?
Prices vary more than in almost any other jewellery category, because the range runs from mass-made steel pendants to custom diamonds.
| Type | Typical starting point | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Stainless steel or silver urn pendant | Lowest cost entry point | General market; varies by maker |
| Handmade ash inclusion ring (silver, lab stones) | From about $264 | Sugarberry Memorials, Oct 2026 |
| Fingerprint engraved pendant | Depends on metal and engraving depth | Funeral.com |
| Memorial diamond from ashes | From about $3,000 (2019 figure) | National Geographic |
Solid gold or platinum, larger stones and extra engraving all add to the price. Always ask for a written quote that covers shipping both ways.
Caring for a memorial piece
- Take it off for water and chemicals. Remove resin and ash pieces before swimming, bathing, cleaning or applying lotion and perfume.
- Clean gently. A soft cloth is usually enough. Aggressive polishing can blur engraved fingerprints on softer metals.
- Store it separately. Keep it in a soft pouch so harder stones do not scratch it.
- Check settings yearly. A jeweller can check the claws and seal on a ring, which takes the most knocks.
- Insure it. Add valuable pieces to your home contents policy, and keep the maker’s details for repairs.
Faith, family and etiquette
Not every tradition is comfortable with dividing ashes. The Law & Religion UK blog notes that Catholic guidance from 2016 asks that ashes are not divided among family members, while Church of England guidance treats removing a few particles before interment as minor. If faith matters to your family, talk to your minister or celebrant first.
Within families, a quiet conversation before ashes are divided avoids hurt later. Many families order matching pieces, one for each child or grandchild, which can bring people together rather than apart.
Frequently asked questions
How much ash is needed? Very little. Sugarberry asks for about a teaspoon for every five pieces. A memorial diamond needs more, so confirm with the lab.
Can I still make a piece if my loved one was buried? Yes. Hair, fabric, soil, flowers, a fingerprint or handwriting all work without ashes.
Is it morbid? For most of history, wearing jewellery for the dead was entirely normal. The Victorians wore hair from loved ones every day. Many people today find that a small, private reminder helps rather than hurts.
Can I wear it every day? Yes, if it is well made. Rings take the most wear, so choose solid metal and durable stones, and take it off for heavy work.
Keeping someone close
From a skeleton ring in a Stuart nobleman’s pocket to a moissanite set over a teaspoon of ashes in a Las Vegas studio, memorial jewellery has always done the same quiet job. It turns grief into something you can hold.
What has changed is choice. Cremation, lab-grown stones and laser engraving mean almost any family can now have a piece that is personal, permanent and genuinely beautiful. Makers like Sugarberry Memorials show how far the craft has come from the urn pendant. The best advice is the same as for any fine jewellery: know what you want it to hold, check the metal and the maker, and take your time.
Browse the Carat and craft directory to find memorial jewellers near you, or makers who work by post anywhere in the world.
Sources and further reading
History
- GIA: Antique Victorian-era mourning jewellery
- British Museum: 17th-century memento mori ring
- Fellows: Stuart crystal jewellery
- Chiswick Auctions: Mourning jewellery in Georgian and Victorian Britain
- The Met: Mourning ring, New York, 1733
- Massachusetts Historical Society: Colonial mourning jewellery
- V&A: Mourning locket, 1871
- Whitby Museum: Jet collection
Memorial jewellery today
- NFDA: 2025 Cremation and Burial Report
- Cremation Society: British Islands statistics 2024
- National Geographic: Ashes to diamonds
- Cremation Institute: Turning ashes into diamonds
- Funeral.com: Fingerprint jewellery explained
- Yorkshire Post: Ashes and breast milk jewellery
Sugarberry Memorials
- Sugarberry Memorials
- The Story Exchange: Kayce Jones profile
- Sugarberry cremation rings
- Sugarberry cremation necklaces
- Jewelers of America: Sugarberry Memorials listing
- Sugarberry colour guide
- Sugarberry: Before you order
- Sugarberry customer reviews
Buying advice