Gothic Snake Wrapped Cross Pendant — .925 Sterling Silver
SKU: 1189
Two different textures on one pendant. The cross face is stippled — rough, grainy, almost sandblasted. The serpent wound around its upright shaft is the opposite: fine carved scales, bright on the ridges, oxidized black in every gap. This gothic snake cross pendant runs 40 × 68mm and weighs 17 grams. It is cast in solid .925 sterling silver. Big enough that each texture reads on its own, and heavy enough to swing forward when you lean over.
Best Suited For
If you're drawn to symbols with layered meaning — Snake and cross together carry centuries of competing interpretation. Moses' bronze serpent. The Rod of Asclepius. Older pagan imagery of rebirth and renewal. This pendant holds all those readings at once, and the weathered texture on the cross makes it look excavated rather than newly finished.
If you want a pendant that doesn't disappear under a shirt — 68mm tall. It sits well below the collarbone and has enough weight to hang straight rather than drift sideways. Best paired with a 2mm–4mm chain in matching sterling silver.
If you collect gothic jewelry and already own the skulls — The serpent-on-cross motif occupies a completely different lane. The snake's head rests at the center where the arms meet. The body coils around the upright shaft — over the front, behind the metal, out again. The tail tapers to a fine point at the foot of the cross.
What Wearing It Actually Feels Like
The dual finish is what makes this pendant work visually. The stippled cross absorbs light — dark, ancient, deliberately matte. The polished ridges along the snake's back reflect it, and so does the raised silver border outlining every arm. Under overhead lighting that contrast is dramatic enough that the serpent appears to glow against the darker cross behind it. In dimmer surroundings, the snake seems to emerge gradually from shadow.
The flared arms give it a gothic silhouette rather than a traditional Latin shape. Each of the four tips splits into three separate points. The snake ignores those side arms completely, winding around the upright shaft instead. It passes behind the metal and back out to the front, which is why the pendant has genuine depth from the side. The head sits at the intersection, just left of the shaft — mouth closed, one carved eye catching the light.
They age differently, but not in the way most people anticipate. The cross is already oxidized dark down in the texture grain, so fresh tarnish barely registers against it. The bright work is where you actually notice the change — the raised border around each arm, the snake's back, the fluted bail. A dry silver cloth over those high points restores the original contrast in roughly a minute.
Heads up: The snake's head is the highest point on the whole pendant. It stands well clear of the cross face rather than sitting flush. Against a knit sweater it can pick at the weave — over a t-shirt is the safer call.
The Details That Matter
What People Want to Know
Q: Is the snake-on-cross motif Christian or pagan?
Both — and neither exclusively. Christian scripture has Moses raising a bronze serpent on a pole (Numbers 21:8). Greek medicine has the Rod of Asclepius. Older pagan symbolism reads the snake as rebirth. Most people who wear this motif like the tension between those three readings.
Q: Does this pendant come with a chain?
No — the pendant is sold on its own. The silver chain in the photos shows scale and how the piece hangs, but it is not included in the box. Most buyers pair this 17-gram pendant with a 2mm to 4mm sterling silver chain. A leather cord works too, for a rougher look.
Q: What chain thickness works with a 17-gram pendant?
2mm to 4mm is the range that works. Curb and rope chains spread a 17-gram load across the collar better than thin box or snake chains do. Below 2mm the chain looks undersized next to a 40mm-wide pendant, and it sags at the bail under the weight.
Q: Will the two finishes age at different rates?
Yes. The bright polished areas dull first — the raised border around each arm, the snake's back, the fluted bail. Fresh tarnish shows most on a mirror surface. The stippled cross is already oxidized dark in the grain, so it changes far less. A dry silver cloth fixes it in about a minute.
The Numbers
You Might Also Want
Same wrapped-cross idea, hardware instead of a serpent. The chain wrapped gothic cross pendant is smaller at 30 × 55mm but thicker through the body. Its miniature chain is fixed into the casting rather than coiled around a shaft.
For a cross from a different tradition, the Celtic cross biker pendant sets interlocking knotwork inside a 25 × 50mm dog tag frame. It lies flatter against the chest than this one, with no raised snake to catch a sweater.
Browse more sterling silver designs in the cross pendant collection.
For darker, heavier designs, explore the full gothic pendant collection.