Cross
Category
Objets de vertu
Date
1930 - 1940
Materials
Gold, pearl and zicon with chrysopras
Measurements
120 x 68 x 7 mm
Order this imageCollection
Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire
NT 517244
Caption
Dorothy (Dorrie) Nossiter was a respected maker and designer of jewellery working in the late Arts and Crafts tradition. She was born in Birmingham – a centre for excellence in jewellery – and from 1910 attended its Municipal School of Art. By 1929 she was based in London. Nossiter’s jewellery is rarely marked or signed (there was no legal requirement to hallmark jewellery at this time), so the attribution of her work can be difficult. Her pieces are characterised by densely clustered settings of precious and semiprecious gems in vibrant and soft colour tones (sometimes described as ‘massed colour schemes’). The small, naturalistic gold grape and vine leaf motifs seen on this heavily jewelled cross pendant often feature in her work. Nossiter made pendants, brooches, rings, dress clips and earrings – all intended to harmonise with fashionable clothing and to be suitable for day or evening wear. Throughout her career Nossiter worked with the King brothers, who created the intricate silver and gold settings needed for her pieces. Although some designs do survive, a 1937 review of an exhibition of her work describes her working in a spontaneous way – ‘she never draws a design, but works it out by playing with the gems she has chosen’. Nossiter regularly exhibited her work, which helped to establish her reputation and even attracted royal clients – her work was reportedly owned by Queen Mary and the Princess Royal. Her jewellery was regularly included in annual shows such as the Applied Arts and Handicrafts Exhibition in London, as well as at independent galleries including The Spinning Wheel in Stratford-upon-Avon and The Craft House in Reigate. She also featured in a series of group exhibitions showcasing contemporary women artists held at Walker’s Galleries on New Bond Street, London, between 1935 and 1939. In 1941 she showed a collection at the upmarket Bon Marché department store in Liverpool. An advertisement shows the broad price range of Nossiter’s work – pieces cost between 49 shillings and £100 (‘collector’s items or tiny conversation pieces’), roughly equivalent today to £100–£4,000. Very unusually, Nossiter gave many of her jewels titles – from the elegant Quiet Evening to a multi-strand pearl and sapphire necklace that was evocatively named She Done Him Wrong.
Summary
Cross-shaped pendant, silver and gold set with zircon, chrysoprase, sapphire and pearl, attributed to Dorrie Nossiter, ca 1935; the gold and silver setting with cast grapes and vines.
Provenance
Bequeathed to the National Trust by Huttleston Rogers Broughton, 1st Lord Fairhaven (1896-1966) with the house and the rest of the contents.
References
Conroy, Rachel, Women Artists and Designers at the National Trust, 2025, pp. 218-9