A Britannia silver and ruby crystal collar necklace and earring suite by Louis Osman, 1974, the collar composed of graduated oblong hammered silver links each supporting an unpolished ruby crystal, suspending a fringe of similarly-set detachable drops, with a further detachable drop to the centre, together with a pair of ear pendants en suite, necklace and ear pendants hallmarked for Britannia silver, London, maker’s mark ‘LO’, necklace length 36cm, ear pendant length 40mm. £8,000-£10,000

Commissioned by David Mumford in 1973 as a silver wedding anniversary gift for his wife, Mary.

Exhibited at Canons Ashby, Northamptonshire, in May 1974, the exhibition titled ‘OSMAN’ comprised 131 pieces of Louis Osman’s work, displayed in the Long Gallery at Canons Ashby,. This ruby suite was listed in the catalogue as No. 116, with full colour illustration. A copy of this catalogue accompanies this lot

Arguably one of the most important goldsmiths of the 20th century, Louis Osman (1914-1996) began his working life as an architect, but moved to working with precious metals in the early 1960s.

His best known piece is the crown commissioned by the Goldsmiths’ Company, presented to Queen Elizabeth II for the Prince of Wales’s investiture at Carnarvon Castle on 1 July 1969.

Several exhibitions of his work were held, including the ‘Louis Osman Gold Exhibition’ at Goldsmiths’ Hall in 1971 and the ‘Osman’ exhibition at Canons Ashby, Northamptonshire, in May 1974, where Louis and his family was living and working at the time.

Louis “always undertook meticulous research to ensure his commissions were appropriate to the individuals or institutions commissioning them”. A preliminary sketch for this suite was sold at Noonans, (formerly Dix Noonan Webb) as part of The Personal Archive of Louis Osman, lot 311, 26 March 2019, (illustrated here, this original sketch is not included with this lot). Signed to bottom left: ‘Jewels for Mary Mumford’s Silver Wedding Anniversary’, this sketch demonstrates the different options that were considered - rings, bracelets, etc., that were considered, before the final design was decided upon. The fully articulated form allows for movement with the wearer, the exact shape personally fashioned to fit the recipient, Mary Mumford, with the hammered silver complimenting the unpolished ruby crystals. The drops are detachable from the collar, each with a hook to the reverse.


Jenny Moore, in her biography of Louis Osman, lists ‘Louis Osman’s Jewellery....‘1973 Jewellery for silver wedding - Private Owner’ (see page 173).
This entry probably refers to this commission.

Literature:
Moore, J: Louis Osman (1914-1996): The Life and Work of an Architect and Goldsmith, pub. Halsgrove 2006.