White Copper Black and White Guards Ring

In folk belief the Black and White Wuchang are the officers who fetch the souls of the dead, one tall and one short, one white and one black, their hats lettered on one side Wealth at First Sight and on the other Peace Under Heaven. The white one is Xie Bi'an, the black one Fan Wujiu, names that come out of folk tale with regional variations, so do not treat them as settled. The ring takes the faces, not the bodies: hat wings, brows, eyes and tongue crowded onto one bezel is plenty of information already. The height of the hat is the marker between them; one look at the wings and you know which is which.

Making figures on a ring band is difficult because of the curve. On a circle the head has to follow the arc, so the carver sets the face at the centre of the bezel, pushes the hat up past the edge of the band, and draws brows, eyes and tongue back toward the sides. From the front it is a face; turn it to the side and only a ridge is left. That is not a shortcut but the limit of the form: spread a whole body over the curve and the features come apart. The wider the bezel, the harder the face is to place, and some designs simply drop the tongue and keep the brows.

Both versions are white copper, so the metal does not tell them apart; the face does. The white figure's hat is taller, the tongue longer, the eyes narrowed in a smile; the black figure's face is broader, the brows pressed low, the menace heavier. Do not expect colour to separate them when you buy; read the pattern. White copper is cool and looks like silver on the hand, and with time the edges warm and the hollows darken first. That is oxidation. White copper is not plated, the colour goes all the way through, and wherever it wears it is the same colour.

Some people are uneasy about the subject, so read your recipient first. In folk practice these two are not simply malignant; the line on the hat, Wealth at First Sight, is a piece of good-luck wordplay, and older households have kept them. Do not give one to a house in mourning. A joke is a joke, but the occasion has to be right. Store it away from keys; white copper is soft and a knock leaves a dent. This kind of subject sells slowly, so leave it on the tray without hurry, and the right customer asks once and it is done.

A wide bezel needs allowance in the size. A size that fits you in a narrow band will often need a half size up here, or it will jam at the knuckle and, once on, refuse to turn. This shows most on people with thick knuckles and a narrow base: measure the base of the finger, not the knuckle. Hands swell in summer and are thinner in the morning than in the afternoon, so try it on after lunch. The inside of the band should be polished; a rough wall rubs the finger, and more so once you sweat.