Badge — Soroptimist International Association name badge for Mrs Gabrielle Enthoven , Birmingham, mid 20th century
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
mid 20th century
Badge in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (museum number S.12-2019), made in Birmingham, dated mid 20th century. The museum's brief description reads: Soroptimist International Association name badge for Mrs Gabrielle Enthoven, mid 20th century..
Museum description: Soroptimist International Association badge, circular, silver, with figure of a woman in high relief, head and torso, her arms raised above her head holding a bar with the word 'SOROPTIMIST' in blue enamel. Behind her head are rays of light. At the upper edge are laurel leaves, at the lower are the words 'INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION' in blue enamel on a band. With metal pin. Attached to a bar on the reverse is a royal blue grosgrain ribbon, from which is suspended a yellow metal rectangular holder containing a white plastic label printed with the words 'GREATER LONDON' in red, and, in black, 'MRS GABRIELLE ENTHOVEN, O.B.E.
THEATRE ARCHIVIST'. In green card box with printed name, address and logo of Thomas Fattorini Ltd on inside of lid and printed guarantee on base, the latter annotated with the name 'Enthoven'. The museum records it as Enamelled silver, cotton ribbon, metal and plastic, measuring Diameter 1.8 cm; Height 2.5 cm; Width 4.8 cm; Height 6.5 cm. These details come from the museum's own record; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Soroptimist International Association name badge for Mrs Gabrielle Enthoven, mid 20th century. From an early age Gabrielle Enthoven, née Romaine (1868-1950), was fascinated by the theatre. After her marriage in 1893 she began to collect press cuttings and playbills and, following the death of her husband in 1910, she became involved with the Pioneer Players, a feminist theatre company for which she wrote plays. As her collection of theatrical material grew, Mrs Enthoven became aware that no archive or museum was documenting the British theatre as she was doing. In 1911 she wrote to the Observer newspaper, beginning a campaign for the establishment of a national collection for the performing arts within an existing museum. Though she received support in the press, an attempt by the London Museum to establish a permanent exhibition of theatre was unsuccessful. Mrs Enthoven, however, continued her campaign and, after several attempts, in 1924 she persuaded the V&A to take her vast collection, which by this time was outgrowing her home. The Gabrielle Enthoven Collection was housed in the Prints and Drawings department and Mrs Enthoven continued to work on the collection in a voluntary capacity and provided funding for staff and for new acquisitions. The Gabrielle Enthoven Collection was one of the founding collections of the V&A's Theatre Museum (1974-2007) and the collection's playbills, cuttings, photographs, prints, designs and memorabilia are now held in the V&A…
Physical characteristics
- Material
- silver, enamel, cotton (textile), metal, plastic
- Dimensions
- Diameter 1.8 cm; Height 2.5 cm; Width 4.8 cm; Height 6.5 cm
Technical characteristics
- Technique
- Enamelled silver, cotton ribbon, metal and plastic
- Place recorded
- Birmingham
Identification
- Museum object name
- Badge
- Museum object number
- S.12-2019
- Museum system number
- O1481129
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type, maker and catalogue references against a specialist reference.