Description
Georgian locket, 2.5 x 2.1cm., containing intertwined hair, given by [Major] Walter and Jane Scott on their wedding day [3 February 1825] to the poet, engraved on verso "To Sir Walter Scott from Walter & Jane Scott", red morocco box, subsequently given after the poet's death to William Laidlaw; with autographed letter from Walter Scott's son "To William Laidlaw our dear fathers valued and affectionate friend from his sincere friends Walter & Jane Scott with the request that the inclosed hair of our dear father be placed in the locket which has been so often worn by the deceased, Abbortsford, Sept. 28, 1832"; together with a Victorian mourning brooch (2)
Footnote
Provenance: Ballantyne family, by descent.
Note: A treasured gift from Walter Scott's son and wife to his father's friend, steward and amanuensis. During Scott's last illness, William Laidlaw was constant in his attendance, and his presence was a source of peculiar pleasure to the author. After the funeral, Sir Walter's eldest son and his lady presented Laidlaw with a brooch, their marriage gift to their revered father, which he wore at the time of his decease; it was afterwards worn by his affectionate steward to the close of his life.