Helen Molesworth is a renowned jewellery historian, gemmologist, author and the Dr Genevieve Davies Senior Curator of Jewellery at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Her 25-year career has taken her across the international world of gems and jewellery, from the ruby mines of Burma and emerald mines of Colombia to the sapphire beds of Sri Lanka and the great salerooms and collections of London, Geneva, Paris and New York. 

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After studying Classics at Christ Church, Oxford, Helen spent ten years as a jewellery specialist at Sotheby’s and Christie’s in London and Geneva, where she worked on major international sales including the private jewellery collection of HRH The Princess Margaret in 2006. She subsequently became Professeur d’Histoire du Bijou at Geneva’s University of Art and Design and Managing Director of Gübelin’s gemmological Academy, before joining the V&A. She was Lead Curator of the museum’s blockbuster 2025 exhibition Cartier, the first major UK exhibition devoted to the legendary jewellery house in almost 30 years. Helen is a Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. Her books include Precious: The History and Mystery of Gems Across Time and, in 2025, Cartier, the official book accompanying the V&A exhibition.