Richardson Rambles

May 2025

The Victoria and Albert Museum currently has a wonderful exhibit of Cartier jewelry and other pieces designed by the world-renowned design studio.  Along with significant eye-candy, the exhibit includes historical information about the house, a video about the process of creating and making a piece in their Pantera line, and fun video clips showcasing their jewelry.  The exhibit is organized by style, type of gemstone, and country of inspiration, which made it much easier to appreciate the many pieces displayed – otherwise it would have been overwhelming.  As it is, many a visitor leaves with their head spinning from the sight of so much bling.  The bling, by the way, encompasses the perfectly exquisite, the magisterially tasteful, and the grotesquely ostentatious (these latter usually being commissioned pieces by people with too much money and too little taste – I didn’t take a lot of pictures of these.) 

Louis-François Cartier (1819- 1904) founded Maison Cartier in 1847 after serving as a jewelry apprentice, and later purchased his master’s shop.  In 1856, Princess Mathilde Bonaparte requested a simple jewelry repair and soon began purchasing new pieces from him.  Louis-François’ son, Alfred, joined the firm as did grandsons Louis, Pierre, and Jacques.  The grandsons solidified Louis-François’ legacy, continuing to network with nobility and the merely rich, and building the brand as we know it today – one of the finest, and most famous jewelry companies in existence. 

The exhibit began with an introduction to Cartier jewelry and included several tiaras:

Tiara “Bandeau Oriental”, c. 1910.  Diamonds, platinum.

Tiara, 1912.  Special order with carved rock crystal, diamonds, and platinum.

The exhibit continued with sections dedicated to designs inspired by particular countries.

Country of Inspiration: Iran

Cigarette Case, c. 1920. 

Vanity case with key, c. 1930.  Owned by American-born Consuelo Vanderbilt, Duchess of Marlborough.

Country of Inspiration: Egypt

Clock.  Lapis lazuli, mother-of-pearl, gold, copper, bronze.

Four-stranded necklace.  Pearls, rubies, gold. 

Country of Inspiration: India

Bracelet, 1925.  Emeralds, rubies, onyx, diamonds, and platinum.

Country of Inspiration: Japan

Large “Portique” mystery clock, 1923 in the form of a Japanese Shinto shrine gate. The mystery is how the clock hands move with no visible mechanism for doing so.

Owned by Ganna Walska, Polish-born opera singer.  Rock crystal, onyx, goliath (replaced the original coral), diamonds, enamel, gold, platinum.

Japanese portable mirror and stand, 1800-1875.  Copper, wood, gold, lacquer.

Japanese mirror clock, 1945, inspired by the portable mirror and stand above.  A gold dragon conceals the mechanism connecting the clock’s hands to the movement.  Coral, mother-of-pearl, diamonds, glass, enamel, lacquer, gold, platinum, silver.

Country of Inspiration: China

With the downfall of the Qing dynasty, Chinese art treasures began to pour into Europe, fueling enthusiasm for all things Chinese.

Pendant, 1922.  Owned by American-born Grace (Hinds) Duggan Curzon, Marchioness Curzon of Kedelston.  Natural pearls, coral, onyx, emerald, diamonds, platinum, silk cord.

Screen clock, 1922. Carved white jade, coral, onyx, diamonds, enamel, gold, and platinum.

Ear pendants, 1926.  Jade, coral, diamonds, enamel, platinum.

Clutch bag, 1927. Suede, jade, onyx, mother-of-pearl, coral, enamel, diamonds, silver, gold.

Vanity case, 1929.  Jade, coral, mother-of-pearl, diamonds, enamel, gold, platinum.

Chinese vanity case, 1926. Lacquer burgauté, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, coral, diamonds, enamel, gold, platinum.

Vanity case, 1927.  Mother-of-pearl, ruby, sapphire, carnelian, nephrite jade, hardstones, diamonds, enamel, platinum, gold.

Country of Inspiration: Russian Empire

Apparently, Cartier decided to develop Russian-empire inspired pieces in order to capitalize on the popularity of Russian jeweler Peter Carl Fabergé’s decorative Easter eggs, each of which housed a special surprise.  We happened to see a small exhibition of Fabergé pieces at the Met a few days before seeing the Cartier exhibit, so I’ve included one image below with descriptions of the three eggs on display.

Fabergé Red Imperial Caucasus Egg, 1893.  Gift of Czar Alexander III to his wife, Maria Feodorovna.  Four doors open to reveal images of Abastunum, the Romanov’s hunting lodge in the Caucasus.  A fifth image, under a diamond on the top of the egg, depicts their son, the Grand Duke George Alexandrovich, who suffered from tuberculosis. Yellow and quatre-couleur gold, silver, platinum, guilloché enamel, and table-cut diamond crystal, ivory, watercolor. 

Fabergé Pink Imperial Danish Palaces Egg, 1890.  Gift of Czar Alexander III to his wife, Maria Feodorovna.  This egg opens on a hinge to reveal a folding, 10-panel gold screen with images of the Empress’s favorite Danish and Russian retreats.

Fabergé Green Imperial Napoleonic Egg, 1912.  Gift of Czar Nicholas II to his mother, the dowager empress Maria Feodorovna, commemorating the Russian victory over Napoleon.  This egg opens on a single hinge.  The interior of the egg is gold, and it holds a folding six-panel screen with images of the six regiments to which the dowager empress served as an honorary colonel.  Gold, guilloché enamel, rose-cur diamond, platinum, ivory, goache, velvet, silk.

The framed miniatures on either side are the surprises that were hidden inside the eggs.

The images below show a few Cartier pieces inspired by Russia.  I didn’t find them particularly compelling, But I included them here since the show’s curators apparently thought them worthy.

Vanity set and clock.  Platinum and colored enamels.

Budai Laughing Buddha figures.  Pink rose quartz and jade, lapis lazuli, sapphire, diamonds.

Locking in the Client Base: Royalty and Wealth

The House of Cartier built strong ties to the wealthy and famous and had special merchandising agreements with seven royal courts, including those of Great Britain, Spain, Russia, and Thailand.  These clients and others also commissioned special pieces with some frequency.

Head ornament, 1924.  Diamonds, platinum, white and rose gold, feather. 

Tiara, 1937.  Owned by Princess Anne of England.  Aquamarine, diamonds, platinum.

Indian Tiara, 1923.  Originally commissioned by Lady Granard, who returned it.  It was later acquired by another British royal and modified to her taste.  Pearls, sapphires, diamonds, platinum.

Elephant mystery clock, 1928.  Owned by the Maharaja Ranjitshinhj of Nawanager.  Jade, onyx, diamonds, pearls, coral, mother-of-pearl, crystal, enamel, platinum, gold.

Patiala necklace, 1928, restored 1999-2002.  One of the largest commissions in Cartier’s history.  It was lost after Indian independence in 1947 and when later discovered, was missing its largest gemstones.  These were replaced in the restoration.  Diamonds, cubic zirconia, topaz, synthetic rubies, smokey quartz, citrine, platinum (this latter used for mounting rather than the traditional yellow gold used by Indian royalty).

Tiger’s Eye turban ornament, 1937.  Fancy intense brownish yellow (per the V&A) diamond (61.5 carats), diamonds, platinum.

The Panther Collection

Cartier introduced the Panther Collection in 1914.  The panther represents both strength and elegance and has become a favorite of Cartier clients.

Panther-pattern wristwatch, 1914.  Onyx, diamonds, platinum, rose gold, moiré strap.

Panther-pattern watch-brooch, 1915.  Onyx, diamonds, platinum, silk cord.

Necklace and brooch, 1988.  Sapphires, emeralds, onyx, diamonds, platinum, white gold.

And more tiaras, because who doesn’t want a tiara?

Tiaras took pride of place in a room dedicated solely to them at the end of the exhibit.  I am a big fan of tiaras conceptually – I admit to never having worn one.  The Cartier tiaras were absolutely exquisite and could probably tempt any woman to try one on.