Brooch, silver wire framework set with opals and glass, designed by Georgie Cave Gaskin, Birmingham, about 1922. Height: 1.6cm; Width: 5.6cm; Depth: 1.1cm © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Arthur and Georgie Gaskin were a husband and wife team known for their Arts and Crafts style jewellery. They had both studied at the Birmingham School of Art and went on to establish a workshop which was admired for producing elegant, hand-made pieces in a city geared to the machine-production of jewellery on an industrial scale.

Describing how they worked, Georgie wrote ‘I did all the designing & he did all the enamel, and we both executed the work with our assistants.’ Their jewellery was mainly in silver and like this brooch was characterised by designs of closely-packed leaves and flowers sprinkled with gemstones. Between 1902 and 1924 Arthur was also head of the Birmingham School for Silversmiths and Jewellers.