English jewelry designer Sibyl Dunlop

English jewelry designer Sibyl Dunlop (1889 – 20 December 1968)
British jewelry designer Sybil Dunlop (1889–1968) was best known for her Late Arts and Crafts jewelry and silver objects. Sybil studied jewelry in Brussels, and upon her return to London in the 1920s, she began a business in partnership with W. Nathanson. In 1939, due to ill health, she closed her workshop at 69 Kensington Church Street, London W8. However, Nathanson resumed the business in the 1940s and continued to produce jewelry in the late Arts and Crafts style. He marked the pieces with the initials SD for Sybil Dunlop, as well as the traditional London and the year of manufacture hallmarks. With Nathanson’s retirement in 1971, the business ceased to exist.
Dunlop’s work is characterized by the use of semi-precious and precious gemstones such as chalcedony, chrysoprase, moonstone, amethyst, agate, quartz and opals, along with silver. Remarkably, the gemstones were cut for Dunlop in workshops in Germany until the outbreak of World War II.
Judging by the design, her jewelry has a visual resemblance to the work of another English designer, Dorrie Nossiter (1893-1977), who was a contemporary of Dunlop. Moreover, some items attributed to Dunlop (the so-called “gem carpet”) are in fact works by Nossiter. Yet, the design, and even more so the markings, allow jewelry collectors to distinguish between these designers.

English jewelry designer Sibyl Dunlop (1889 – 20 December 1968)