White Copper Seven Stars Gold Nail Totem Ring

The Big Dipper looks like a ladle: four stars make the bowl and three the handle. Old observers read the direction of the handle to fix the season — handle pointing east and all under heaven is in spring — a line already in the Heguanzi. Turning the seven stars into seven raised points is a common treatment on copper work, and old mirror backs are laid out the same way. There are two ways of setting them, joined by lines or scattered, and this ring scatters them, each star standing alone. The handle turning full circle makes a year, a saying still repeated today.

White copper band, seven studs in a row across the face, each head rounded off so it does not scratch. Small talisman characters are cut between the studs, shallow enough that you need raking light to read them. The men's studs are larger, the women's smaller, and the ring sizes differ by a step as well. The studs are cast rather than soldered on, and each has a fillet at its base that feels like a gentle slope. The inside of the band is plain, with no engraving, so it does not rub the gaps between fingers. The seven should sit at the same height, which the hand can feel; uneven ones are seconds.

The name golden studs misleads. There is no gold in them; the metal is white copper in its natural colour, and the raised points catch light and shine, which is where the old name comes from. On copper work the word jin often means metal rather than gold, a usage anyone who handles old pieces will know: in the trade, gold means a colour, not a material. The nickel in white copper pushes the colour toward silver and also lifts the hardness well above brass.

Seven raised points on the hand give the fingertip something to find, and you notice them while working. Some people find them intrusive; others like being reminded. The face is broad, so the studs press against the neighbouring finger when you make a fist. A few days and it settles, most noticeable gripping a steering wheel, where pushing the ring back toward the base of the finger helps. The women's studs are smaller and the feel is milder, which suits anyone unused to a wide band; once you are used to the wide one, going back feels empty.

The raised points brighten first and the hollows collect dirt first, so after six months the contrast between light and dark is plain. Wash in warm water with a little neutral soap, work a soft brush around the base of each stud, rinse and dry at once rather than leaving it to soak. Water trapped at the seam between stud and band will turn green over time. After drying, do not seal it in a bag immediately; leave it a while so the damp in the seams can escape.