Religious necklaces in solid 14K gold and .925 sterling silver, each one complete on its own chain at a stated length rather than a pendant you then have to find a chain for. Most are crosses — upright and sideways, plain and set with stones — alongside crucifixes, miraculous medals, a patron saint or two and a rosary. They are bought as gifts far more often than for oneself, which is why every length, every stamp and every stone on this page is stated rather than implied.
See also religious cross pendants, crucifix and corpus pendants, necklaces and chains, rosary necklaces, sterling silver saint medals, gold medals and patron saints, 10K religious jewelry, Judaica in sterling silver, sacrament gifts, religious earrings, religious rings and diamond necklaces.
More about religious necklaces
A cross and a crucifix are not the same thing, and the difference matters to some buyers
A cross is the bare form: two intersecting bars, with nothing on them. A crucifix is a cross that carries the corpus — the figure of Christ — and in Catholic devotion that figure is the point of the object, not a decoration on it. The distinction is not stylistic. For a Catholic baptism, First Communion or Confirmation gift a crucifix is often what is wanted and a plain cross is a near miss; for a Protestant recipient the plain cross is usually the right choice and a crucifix may not be. Neither is more correct. If you are buying for someone else and do not know, the plain cross is the safer of the two. Each product page says which form it is, and the corpus is visible in the photographs.
Sideways crosses, and why they hang the way they do
A sideways cross — sometimes called an east-west cross — is set with its long axis running along the chain instead of hanging down from it. The cross lies flat across the collarbone and reads as a small horizontal bar at a distance, which is why it is often chosen by people who want the symbol without it being the first thing anyone sees. Mechanically it behaves differently from an upright pendant: it is fixed to the chain at two points rather than swinging from a bail, so it does not spin or flip round to face backwards, and it sits closer to the skin under a collar. It also means the chain and the cross are one piece — you cannot move the pendant to a longer chain later, so the stated length is the length you are buying.
Choosing a length, particularly for a child
Length is the detail most often got wrong on a gift. On an adult, 16 inches sits at the base of the throat, 18 inches — the most common length here — falls just below the collarbone and clears most necklines, and 20 inches sits on the breastbone. On a child the same numbers behave quite differently: 14 to 15 inches suits a small child, 16 inches a school-age child, and an 18-inch chain on a young child will hang low enough to catch. Several pieces here include a short extender, in which case the stated length is the longest setting and the shorter one is on the product page. Where a necklace is a Communion or Confirmation gift for a child who is still growing, the extender is worth more than the exact number.
Medals and devotions, and what the common ones mean
A Miraculous Medal carries the image of Mary with the words of the 1830 apparition to Catherine Labouré around the rim; it is the most widely worn Marian medal there is. St. Christopher is the patron of travellers and the usual gift for someone driving, flying or leaving home. A Chai pendant spells the Hebrew word for "life" in two letters and is a Jewish rather than Christian piece. A rosary worn as a necklace is a devotional object first and jewellery second, and is strung rather than linked like a chain. Where a devotion has its own page on this store, the product page links to it; where it does not yet, the piece still carries its devotion tag so it lands there the moment one exists.
The metals, the stamps, and what rhodium is doing on the silver
The gold here is solid 14K — 58.3% pure gold, stamped 14K — not gold filled and not a coating over another metal. The silver is .925 sterling, stamped 925. A number of the silver pieces carry a rhodium finish: rhodium is a hard white metal from the platinum group applied over the silver, which keeps the white of the metal matched to the white of a stone and slows the tarnishing that sterling silver does naturally. It slows it rather than stopping it. A few chains carry a gold-tone or platinum-tone finish, which is a surface colour over the sterling beneath — the body of those pieces is silver, and the product page says so. Nothing on this page is a plated base metal.
Common questions
What is the difference between a cross and a crucifix?
A crucifix carries the figure of Christ — the corpus — on the cross; a plain cross does not. The distinction is devotional rather than decorative: a crucifix is often what is wanted for a Catholic sacrament gift, while a plain cross suits a wider range of recipients. Each product page states which form the piece is.
What is a sideways cross?
A cross set with its long axis running along the chain, so it lies flat across the collarbone instead of hanging down. It is fixed to the chain at two points, which means it cannot spin round or be moved to a different chain later. The stated length is the length you are buying.
Does the necklace come with a chain?
Yes. Everything on this page arrives complete on its own chain, with the length stated on the product page. Several include a short extender, in which case the stated length is the longest setting.
What length should I buy for a child?
Roughly 14 to 15 inches for a small child, 16 inches for a school-age child. An 18-inch chain — the most common adult length — hangs low on a young child. Where the piece includes an extender it will cover more than one stage, and that is usually the better choice for a growing child.
Is this a suitable gift for a baptism, First Communion or Confirmation?
Yes, and these are the occasions most of these pieces are bought for. For a Catholic sacrament a crucifix or a Miraculous Medal is traditional; for a christening or a first birthday a small plain cross on a short chain is the usual choice. Check the length against the child's age before ordering.
Is the gold solid gold?
Yes. The gold pieces are solid 14K throughout — 58.3% pure gold, stamped 14K and guaranteed authentic. They are not gold filled and not a coating over another metal.
Will the sterling silver tarnish?
Sterling silver darkens with air and moisture over time. Many of these pieces carry a rhodium finish, which slows it considerably without stopping it. A soft polishing cloth restores the shine; keep the piece dry and away from perfume, lotion and chlorine. Solid 14K gold does not tarnish at all.
