EGYPTIAN SCARAB BROOCH, 1925
This is one of my favourite Cartier jewels in the exhibition: it combines ancient and modern so successfully and is a technical tour de force on a tiny scale. The blue scarab at the centre is an ancient Egyptian object, bejewelled by Cartier in the 1920s with incredible cabochon gem–set wings in clashing colours of yellow citrine, red ruby and black onyx, each gem calibrated specially to fit the design. It was inspired by the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922 and the ensuing Egyptomania, and I like to think the boy pharaoh would
have worn this Cartier brooch if he could have.
TUTTI FRUTTI NECKLACE, 1936
Jacques Cartier’s travels to India inspired the designs of the Maison in the early twentieth century, and one of the most famous Cartier motifs was the Tutti Frutti. Inspired by the carved ruby and emerald leaves of traditional Indian jewels, Cartier added the blue of sapphires – a gem traditionally considered bad luck in India – to create a stunning and shocking combination. First seen in 1925, the combo was only termed Tutti Frutti later in the 1970s. Created for Daisy Fellowes, fashionista and heir to the Singer sewing machine fortune, this necklace is perhaps the most famous Tutti Frutti jewel.
THE MAGNIFICENT MANCHESTER TIARA, 1903
We chose this as the opening jewel of the exhibition and with good reason: it’s a piece that perfectly embodies the international intentions of the Maison at the turn of the century. Cartier was founded in 1847 by Louis-François Cartier, but it was his grandsons, the three brothers Louis, Pierre and Jacques, who took Cartier to a new level, with headquarters in Paris, London and New York. The Manchester tiara was made in Paris (by Cartier) in 1903 for an American heiress (Consuelo Yznaga) who had married into the English aristocracy (the Duke of Manchester), perfectly foreshadowing Cartier’s global expansion.
MARIA FELIX SNAKE NECKLACE, 1968
María Félix, the Mexican film star and self-proclaimed diva, once said, ‘I like big jewellery,’ and, referring to her big animal jewels in particular, ‘Cartier knew how to make them like no-one else.’ She built a veritable jewelled menagerie including tigers, snakes and crocodiles, the pair in emeralds and yellow diamonds here entwined in a formidable necklace. Félix especially liked her jewels as realistic as possible: the story goes she turned up at Cartier Paris with an actual baby crocodile for the designers to use as inspiration.
DAME NELLIE MELBA CORSAGE ORNAMENT, 1902
One of Cartier’s earliest Australian patrons was the fabulous Dame Nellie Melba, an opera celebrity and a lover of jewels. Not only was she given gems by adoring fans, but she also acquired Cartier jewels of the period, such as this diamond and pearl corsage ornament (later adjusted to form a necklace), which she wore when she performed at King Edward VII’s coronation concert in the Royal Albert Hall, London in 1902. Dame Nellie was also clearly a fan of turquoise, seen in several other Cartier jewels in her collection. Pierre Cartier kept a signed photograph of Melba on display in his living room.
OPAL BRACELET, 1928
Another special Australian addition for the exhibition is this Art Deco Cartier bracelet showcasing an unrivalled collection of black opals, likely from Lightning Ridge, New South Wales. Opals were discovered there in the nineteenth century, but it wasn’t until the twentieth century that opal mining really took off in Lightning Ridge, which today is still the most important origin for these extraordinary gems. The best black opals display a play of colour – against a black background – ranging from blues and greens to orange and reds in the finest examples, like the five in this beautiful bracelet.
AGATE KANGAROO WITH JOEYS, 1905
Carved hardstone animals were all the rage in aristocratic and even royal circles at the beginning of the twentieth century. Both Cartier, and their great Russian rival, Fabergé, sold wonderful examples, such as this marvellous agate carving of a kangaroo with two joeys. It couldn’t be more perfect for the Australian exhibition of CARTIER!
ASTOR TIARA, 1930
Loaned especially for the Australian exhibition, this tiara is one of the most inspirationally diverse and daring jewels ever created by Cartier. It was made in London in 1930 for the Jewels of the Empire Ball – a charity gala where aristocratic ladies dressed as gems – and it was purchased a month later on New Year’s Eve by Lord Astor for his wife, Nancy. The design incorporates inspiration from Egypt and India as well as Thailand and Cambodia, and was so beloved not only by Nancy but also by her sister, Phyllis, that she had a similar one made a few years later. We are reuniting these tiaras in public at the exhibition in Melbourne probably for the first time since the 1930s.
JADE NECKLACE, 1934
And this is probably the most famous and finest jade necklace in the world. It was originally mounted by Cartier for Barbara Hutton, the Woolworth retail heiress, in 1933, the year of her marriage to Alexis Mdivani. A year later Hutton had Cartier change the clasp to the current ruby and diamond mounting. The jade beads are huge by gem-quality jade standards, perfectly matched, and they almost glow like translucent gooseberries in the right light. Despite her wealth, Hutton lived a troubled life, marrying seven times, the third of which was to the film star Cary Grant, an event which the press dubbed ‘Cash and Carry’.
Helen Molesworth is Senior Curator, Jewellery at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and the Lead Curator for the V&A exhibition CARTIER.
This essay was first published in NGV Magazine | Issue 59 Jul–Aug 2026