Lock of Lord Nelson’s hair taken from him on his deathbed at the Battle of Trafalgar is up for sale at £10,000
Naval hero's ponytail comes complete with an ornate box from the early 1800s
A LOCK of Lord Nelson's hair taken from him as he laying dying at the Battle of Trafalgar has gone up for sale -- and it's a snip at £10,000.
It was the naval hero's dying wish for his mistress Lady Emma Hamilton to receive a cutting of his hair.
It's thought the ship's surgeon snipped off the ponytail before Lord Nelson's body was stored in a brandy barrel and taken back to England.
He received a lavish state funeral at St Paul's Cathedral and remains immortalised as a statue on top of the famous column at Trafalgar Square.
And one strand of many that were given away to grieving friends, family and crew of the HMS Victory -- has remained on display at the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich.
But the lock, stored in an ornately carved agate box from the period, has now come up for sale.
Online saleroom JustCollecting purchased it several years ago and has now put it up for members of the public to buy.
Dan Wade, from JustCollecting, which is selling the item, said: "Lord Nelson is one of the most important figures in British history, so the chance to own a piece of the man himself is quite remarkable.
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"It's electrifying to hold a piece of history like this in your hand, knowing where it came from and the sacrifice Nelson made for his country.
"This lock of hair was likely taken on his deathbed aboard the HMS Victory, and has passed down through generations for more than 200 years.
"Artifacts like this usually end up in museums, but it could easily end up the centrepiece of a superb private collection.
"Admittedly, £10,000 is a lot of money for a lock of hair but the opportunity to own something connected to Nelson is truly unique."
In 2011 a locket containing Nelson's hair along with a lock of Lady Hamilton's sold at auction for £44,000.
Hair from Nelson's great adversary, Napoleon, recently went for £10,000.
And in 2012 a lost portrait of Lord Nelson featured on the BBC's Antiques Roadshow valued at around £100,000.
The online sale ends on Thursday.
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