Pick the metal and the finish first, then the chain that will carry the three skulls
Pick the metal first, since every piece here carries the same three skulls. Nearly every one bought in the year was silver, as the matte pendant, the glossy one or the set with its chain. Take matte to keep the carving clear and hide small scratches. Move up to 14K gold, in yellow, white or rose, for a heavier piece that will not darken like silver. Each one stands 1.9 inches tall.
The meaning: see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil skull pendant meaning
The three faces come from the three wise monkeys. One covers its eyes, one its ears and one its mouth. The best known carving sits over a stable door at a shrine in Nikko, Japan, and the idea is older still, from Confucian teaching on what to look at, listen to and say. On these pendants the monkeys are skulls.
Some men wear it as a personal code. Others take the Western reading, which is to stay out of trouble and keep quiet.
Matte or glossy: silver see no evil pendant, matte or high polish
Take matte for every day. The flat finish keeps each skull's detail crisp and hides the small marks of daily wear. The glossy pendant is the same three skulls at the same size, polished bright, so it catches more light and shows fingerprints sooner. Matte went out most in the year, the glossy close behind.
All three silver listings say .925 sterling. Sterling darkens over months of wear. A soft polishing cloth wipes it bright again. The set hangs the polished pendant on its own 8 mm chain, 22 or 24 inches long.
14K gold and diamonds: gold and diamond see no evil pendant
The same skulls come in 14K gold, in yellow, white or rose. Gold is denser than silver, so the 14K pendant weighs 26.3 grams, about a quarter more than the matte silver one.
The diamond pendant adds 4.08 carats of natural round diamonds held in prongs. They grade G in color and SI1 to VS2 in clarity, near colorless and clean to the eye in stones this small. Ask the desk how soon your gold color can ship.
Size and chain: how big it is, and the chain to wear it on
Each piece measures about 1.35 by 1.9 inches. That is about 34 mm across, inside the everyday range for a men's pendant.
At about 21 grams in silver, it wants a medium link that lies flat. The matte pendant's listing names a box, a curb or a Franco chain. On a 22-inch chain it hangs mid chest, and a 24 drops it lower. Send the desk your chain's width before you order and we will tell you whether it clears the bail, the loop the chain runs through.
Custom and returns: black, gold-dipped or custom see no evil pendant
The set's listing offers black rhodium or yellow gold dipping, diamond or sapphire settings, and fully custom designs on request. Settle any change with the desk first, because a dipped, plated or custom piece is final sale.
An unchanged pendant can go back for fourteen calendar days after the carrier delivers it, if it stays unworn, unaltered and boxed. Clear the return with customer service at service@traxnyc.com or 212-391-3832, and it travels back only on our return label. Your refund comes back short the return shipping and five percent for restocking. Ask about any of the five on the live chat, or call or text 212-872-9692 from 10 AM ET.