A BEJEWELLED JOURNEY THROUGH TIME

The V&A museum in London opens to its first Cartier exhibition in nearly three decades. Spice brings you a ringside view on all that glitters.

- Richa Goyal Sikri

There are few names in jewellery that evoke as much reverence as Cartier. For over a century, it has whispered seduction in platinum and shouted power through diamonds. Now, for the first time in nearly three decades, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London dedicates a major exhibition to this Maison of myth, mastery and modernity. Simply titled Cartier, the show runs from April 12 to November 16, 2025, at the Sainsbury Gallery—yet its impact may well ripple for years beyond.

Clockwise from left: Tiara, Cartier London, 1937. Aquamarine, diamonds and platinum;; Crash Wristwatch, made by Wright & Davies for Cartier London, 1967. Sapphire, gold, blued steel and leather strap with rubies, emeralds, citrine, diamonds, onyx, platinum and gold; Scarab Brooch, Cartier London, 1925. Blueglazed Egyptian faience

This is no ordinary retrospective. Curated with scholarly insight by Helen Molesworth and Rachel Garrahan, the exhibition explores not just the aesthetic evolution of Cartier but its audacious shaping of culture itself. Over 350 objects, many never seen before, trace how three Parisian brothers, Louis, Pierre and Jacques, took their grandfather's modest workshop and forged a brand that became “the jeweller of kings and the king of jewellers.”

You enter through light and shadow, and immediately the tone is set: Cartier isn’t just about luxury, it’s about legacy. You are welcomed by the Manchester Tiara (1903). Commissioned in France, for an American, married into English aristocracy—it perfectly encapsulates Cartier’s early transcontinental reach. The exhibition then unfurls into three distinct acts: creation, craftsmanship and cultural symbolism.