Human hair ornaments were quite popular in the late 19th century, from what I understand. I believe that I've read about them under Victoriana. A good fictional description of the making of one can be found in one of the first two *Elsie Dinsmore* books by Martha Finley. The books were set in the pre- and post-Civil War period, although they were written during the late 19th and early 20th century. As for the receptacle: my grandmother had a dresser set that included a mirror, a hairbrush, a comb, a lidded bowl for face powder, a button hook, and a receptacle such as you describe for hair. The set was made of what she thought was ivory, but what I suspect was an early plastic-like product (made of cellulose nitrate? someone more knowledgable should correct me on this, but I think that was how someone described the lid of another grandmother's prayerbook which I had also thought was ivory). I imagine that the set was a wedding gift; my grandparents were married in 1918. My grandmother explained to me that the hair receptacle was indeed for hair pulled from the hair brush or comb. It was saved to make her own "rats," which were bundles of hair fashioned into tubes--something like sausages. To use them, you brushed your hair down and rolled it over the rat (is it possible that the so-called rat-tail combs were used for this; to help keep the hair rolling neatly around the rat?). It then sat back from your face, somewhat like a hat. Because of the rat, it stayed in that position. In the 1950s, you could buy ready-made rats, made out of some kind of fabric dyed in "hair colors" and a springy one that resembled curlers. The advantage of the self-hair rats, according to my grandmother, was that if the rat showed through at any point, it looked natural--like your own hair. Sorry to have rambled so long. You stirred up a rather remarkable memory that I had forgotten I had! Hope this helps.