A LOCK OF GEORGE WASHINGTON'S HAIR. Clipped lock of whit...

PROPERTY SOLD BY BONHAMS
A LOCK OF GEORGE WASHINGTON'S HAIR.
Clipped lock of white hair, approximately 35 mm in length, bound in the center by a loop of wire, mounted together with a few tiny chips of cedar from the box that housed Washington's coffin at his funeral, together with an explanatory plaque, a reproduction of a portrait of Washington and a facsimile clipped signature. Matted and framed to 463 x 560 mm overall.

The descriptive plaque indicates that the red cedar chips were from a wooden box that held Washington's coffin, which would refer to the casket pall that was constructed of wood and covered inside and out with black fabric. This was placed into the family vault with Washington's remains, but probably removed when a new vault was constructed in 1831, following a failed attempt by a disgruntled Mount Vernon employee to steal Washington's skull. Though the thief emerged with only the skull of a distant in-law, the incident brought to light the urgent need to move George and Martha's remains to the newly constructed vault called for in Washington's own Last Will and Testament.