tårewæsker

Tårewæsker are small containers used to hold dried tears as keepsakes within Scandinavian mourning traditions. The word is a compound of tåre, meaning tear, and æske, meaning box or case, and the plural form tårewæsker denotes multiple such boxes. In Danish and neighboring languages, the term refers specifically to objects kept for sentimental or ritual purposes related to bereavement.

Historically, tårewæsker were most common in the 18th through 19th centuries, though similar objects appear in broader European mourning cultures. They were typically made from glass, crystal, porcelain, or metal, and ranged from finger-sized pendants to modest, box-like vessels. Many were fitted with lids and sometimes designed to be worn as jewelry or carried on a chain, allowing the wearer to keep a tangible memory of a deceased loved one.

The practice associated with tårewæsker involved the voluntary shedding and preservation of tears as a gesture of mourning. Tears could be dried and stored in the container as a commemorative act, or the box might be given within a family as an heirloom intended to preserve a shared memory. The items functioned as intimate personal relics, blending emotional significance with material culture.

In modern times, tårewæsker are primarily of interest to museum curators and scholars studying the history of mourning, material culture, and Nordic craft. They are often found in collections of regional artifacts, jewelry, and religious or funerary objects, illustrating how grief was publicly expressed and privately memorialized in historical Scandinavian societies. See also mourning jewelry, relic containers, and cultural practices surrounding bereavement.