Animal Gold Pendants

The range includes butterflies, dolphins, lions, turtles, owls, birds, horses, cats and fish, among others.

Designs run from simple outlines to detailed modelled pieces, and many use two-tone or tricolor gold to pick out wings, faces and fins.

Each listing gives the dimensions and the gold colour, which is worth checking since the same creature is made at several sizes.

Butterflies are widely read as transformation and renewal. Lions are associated with courage and protection, turtles with longevity and patience, owls with wisdom, horses with freedom and strength.

Dolphins carry connotations of playfulness, intelligence and the sea.

These readings vary between cultures and families rather than being fixed, which is part of the appeal - the meaning the wearer brings is what makes the piece theirs.

It depends on how detailed the design is. A complex creature - an owl's face, a lion's mane, a fish's scales - needs enough surface for the modelling to be legible.

Simple outlines such as a butterfly, a dolphin or a bird stay recognisable at much smaller sizes.

Check the stated millimetre dimensions against the complexity of the piece, and hold a ruler at those figures rather than judging from a photograph.

Because the different gold colours do real work in a shaped design: they separate a wing from a body, a face from a mane, or a fin from a flank.

That gives the eye boundaries that a single-colour piece has to create through modelling alone, so a multi-colour animal often reads more clearly at a smaller size.

The colours come from different gold alloys rather than from plating, so they are part of the metal and will not wear off.

They are among the easiest jewelry gifts to get right, provided you know the person - a creature that refers to something shared will be worn for years.

They are also among the easiest to get wrong, because an animal chosen at random is just decoration.

If you are unsure, something drawn from a shared memory or a known affection beats something picked for how it looks.

It depends on the design, and the listing says which. Some are supplied on their own to hang from a chain of your choosing.

If you are pairing one with a chain you already own, check the fitting at the top of the pendant against the widest point of that chain, including the clasp.

Buying the pendant separately gives more flexibility over the length it sits at.

Animal designs are among the most popular choices for children, and smaller, simpler shapes suit best.

What to look for is a smooth outline without projecting points that could catch, a modest scale, and a secure clasp on whatever chain it hangs from.

A shorter chain, in the fourteen to sixteen inch range, generally suits a child better than an adult length.

Any projecting element - a wing tip, a tail, an ear - is the part most likely to catch, particularly on knitwear.

Smoother, more compact outlines sit flatter and catch less, which is worth bearing in mind for a piece meant to be worn every day.

It is not a reason to avoid detailed designs, but it is a reason to keep the most delicate ones for occasions rather than constant wear.

Some designs are set with stones, and each listing names what is used in that particular piece.

Others are worked entirely in gold, relying on modelling and multi-colour alloys for their detail rather than on stones.

Where a stone is set, it decides the cleaning rules rather than the metal - avoid ultrasonic and steam cleaning on those pieces.

Warm water, a little mild soap and a soft brush, worked into the detail and the recesses where residue collects.

Shaped pendants need this a little more often than smooth ones, simply because there are more places for residue to sit.

Rinse thoroughly, dry with a soft cloth, and store the piece flat so nothing tangles around its projecting parts.