An antique 9ct gold mourning brooch featuring a plait of hair encased in a glass frame. 
Hair art originated in 17th Century England as a practice to mourn the dead. The Victorian era saw hair art's boom in popularity with it becoming a staple of mourning fashion at the time. Hair jewellery was also a way to show your connection to a living friend, child, or spouse - women of the 19th century would swap locks of hair as a love token the way young girls today might wear friendship bracelets.
The reverse shows a delightful Georgian inscription that reads "Mary Musket, 3 June 1822, a.77" showing the piece to be roughly 200 years old.