Cartier show at London’s V&A features 350 jewellery pieces worn by royalty and Hollywood

Exhibition at London’s V&A explores Cartier luxury jewellery, watches and tiaras, with creations spanning decades of elegance and innovation

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A visitor to the Cartier exhibition at London’s V&A looks at the Patiala Necklace, commissioned in 1928 by Bhupinder Singh of Patiala, the Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala, India. Photo: AFP

Published: 7:15pm, 11 Apr 2025

An exhibition celebrating jewellery made by the prestigious French luxury goods company Cartier since the start of the 20th century, including watches and tiaras, will open at London’s V&A Museum on April 12.

Established by Louis-François Cartier in Paris in 1847, the family-run business went on to become a household name popular with royalty and Hollywood stars alike.

“It never goes out of fashion … we see it being worn by English aristocracy 100 years ago and Hollywood royalty practically today,” Helen Molesworth, a senior jewellery curator at the V&A and exhibition curator, said at a private launch of “Cartier” this week.

She said the connection between Cartier and the British royal family dates back to 1902, when King Edward VII issued his first royal warrant, a certificate for providing goods and services to the royal family.

The Rose clip brooch, dated from 1938, was owned by Britain’s Princess Margaret. Photo: AFP

A panther bracelet created in 2015. Photo: AFP

A gallery assistant poses with the Manchester Tiara, which was commissioned in 1903 by Consuelo, the Dowager Duchess of Manchester, and features in Cartier, an exhibition in London. Photo: EPA

Making up some of the 350 jewels and objects on display is a flower brooch with a rare pink Williamson diamond that the late Queen Elizabeth commissioned in 1953 and later wore at King Charles’ wedding to Diana, Princess of Wales.