Copper Zircon Cross Spacer

The cross was an instrument of execution in the Roman world and later became the central symbol of Christian faith. An empty cross stresses resurrection; a cross with a figure on it stresses the Passion, and in churches the two are used differently. As jewellery most people do not care about the distinction, and it does no harm to know it. Some simply like the geometry, which is fair enough — read it as geometry and load nothing more onto it. The four ends here are finished flat rather than as spikes, so nothing digs into the skin.

A spacer is punctuation in a strand. It breaks a long run of beads and gives the rhythm somewhere to pause, so the eye is not asked to run the whole length at one speed. Made as a cross, the face is one vertical line laid over a horizontal one, with the four arms of equal length — the proportion of the Latin cross. The upright is longer than the crossbar, and that proportion is what makes the form stand up.

One zirconia sits at the crossing, set flat rather than standing proud. Zirconia has strong fire; well cut, it is bright, and it costs a great deal less. Cutting has improved a lot in recent years, and at small sizes these stones are hard to tell from diamond at a distance. The difference is in the feel and the weight — without handling it, most people cannot see it. The table faces outwards, so light enters through the table and leaves through the crown.

Match the hole to the beads it sits between. Too small and the cord will not pass; too large and the piece slides, and the spacing along the strand goes uneven. The four ends of the cross are fairly pointed, so choose beads whose holes are chamfered and keep the cord off the copper's edges. Singe the end of the cord before stringing and it goes through more easily. Both holes should ideally be the same size, so the cord runs symmetrically and the cross does not sit at an angle all the way along the strand.

The copper base is plated and the colour runs bright. Plating goes first where friction is heaviest — inside the holes, on the raised corners of the cross. Wearing through does not affect use, it only makes the colour patchy. If that bothers you, place it mid-strand where it rubs less. Wipe it dry before putting it away; sweat left on plating doubles the rate at which it wears. The copper is a little thicker than a typical spacer, so it holds its shape. The plating is on the cool white side and does not clash with silver pieces.