Rossetti's Proserpine Keychain

Proserpine - Dante Gabriel Rossetti. "Why were the Pre-Raphaelites so fascinated with a woman's hair? The answer seems obvious....a woman's hair has been considered "her glory" since Biblical days and before. However, further information on the role of a woman's hair in Victorian times gives even more insight into why the hair was such a romantic and er0tic image in Pre-Raphaelite art. In a biography of Fannie Cornforth, author Kristy Walker says "Loose hair was seen rarely in Victorian society and had two connotations. A child could wear her hair down, but as soon as she aspired to be a woman, or more essentially a 'lady' her hair was strictly pinned up." - The Beautiful Necessity