Triskelion

A triskelion or triskele (both from the Greek or , for "three-legged") is a symbol consisting of three interlocked spirals, or three bent human legs, or any similar symbol with three protrusions and a threefold rotational symmetry. A triskelion is the symbol of Brittany, as well as the Isle of Man and Sicily (where it is called trinacria[1]). The Manx and Sicilian triskelions feature three running legs, bent at the knee and conjoined at the crotch area.

The 'Three Legs of Man' triskelion, the national symbol of the Isle of Man.

Origins
The triskelion symbol appears in many early cultures, including on Mycenaean vessels, on coinage in Lycia, and on staters of Pamphylia (at Aspendos, 370333 BC) and Pisidia. It appears as a heraldic emblem on warriors' shields depicted on Greek pottery.[2] A symbol of four conjoined legs, a tetraskelion, is also known in Anatolia. Celtic influences in Anatolia, epitomized by the Gauls who invaded and settled Galatia, are especially noted by those who theorize a Celtic origin for the triskelion.

Manx Triskelion

Manx car registration plate, with the three-legged triskelion. In the symbol for the Isle of Man, which is located in the Irish Sea, the "three legs embowed" of the heraldic triskelion are represented in armour, "spurred and garnished or (gold). On Manx banknotes, the triskelion appears within a rim containing the Latin inscription QUOCUNQUE JECERIS STABIT ("Wherever you throw it, it stands"). The Manx triskelion is documented since the thirteenth or fourteenth century at the latest, and is alternatively known in the Manx language as the tre cassyn ("three legs"). The symbol appears on the

Isle of Man's ancient Sword of State, which may have belonged to Olaf Godredson, who became King of the Sudreys (Southern Hebrides and the Isle of Man) in 1226.

Sicilian Triskelion

The flag of Sicily, featuring the triskelion symbol revived by Joachim Murat. Familiar as an ancient symbol of Sicily, the triskelion is also featured on Greek coins of Syracuse, such as coins of Agathocles (317289 BCE). In Sicily, the first inhabitants mentioned in history are the tribes of the Sicani (Greek Sikanoi) and the Sicels (Greek Sikeloi), who gave Sicily its more familiar modern name. The triskelion was revived, as a neoclassic and non-Bourbon emblem for the new Napoleonic Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, by Joachim Murat in 1808. The symbol dates back to when Sicily was part of Magna Graecia, the colonial extension of Greece beyond the Aegean.[3] Pliny the Elder attributes the origin of the triskelion of Sicily to the triangular form of the island, the ancient Trinacria, which consists of three large capes equidistant from each other, pointing in their respective directions, the names of which were Pelorus, Pachynus, and Lilybum. The three legs of the triskelion are also reminiscent of Hephaestus's three-legged tables that ran by themselves, as mentioned in Iliad xviii: "At the moment Hephaestus was busily Turning from bellows to bellows, sweating with toil As he laboured to finish a score of three-legged tables To stand around the sides of his firm-founded hall. On each Of the legs he had put a gold wheel, that those magic tables Might cause all to marvel by going with no other help To the gathering of gods and by likewise returning to his house."

Symbol 16:32 A stylized TRISKELION, Greek for THREE-LEG. See in Group 32. This sign is associated with PROGRESS and COMPETITION, and originated in ancient Greece, where it for instance was used on coins. Nowadays one can find on the coat of arms of the Isle of Man,

the island between Great Britain and Ireland. The Isle of Man is inhabited by Celts, and related to , TRIPLE SPIRAL, an early Celtic sign. For more informatin, see in Group 14.

is

Symbol 14:19 This structure is closely related to the Celts, the people who populated Western Europe about 3000 years ago, and then successively later was forced west to Galicia, Brittany, Wales, Scotland and Ireland by Gauls and Germanic tribes. Today, the variation is used as a logotype or symbol for Lalliance des pays Celtes, a separatist movement in the Celtic region of France, Brittany. The sign is associated with migrations and independent movements. Compare with above in this group.

SPIRAL TRISKELE
The Celtic symbol of three conjoined spirals may have had triple significance similar to the imagery that lies behind the triskelion. The triple spiral motif is a Neolithic symbol in Western Europe. It is carved into the rock of a stone lozenge near the main entrance of the prehistoric Newgrange monument in County Meath, Ireland. A variant of the symbol is also found, carved into the wall in the inner chamber of the passage tomb. Because of its Celtic associations, it is also used as a symbol of Brittany (alongside the ermine).

A version of the Neolithic triple spiral symbol.

Spiral triskele, found in Celtic artwork, used by Celtic Reconstructionists and occasionally as a Christian Trinitarian symbol.
MODERN USAGE As recently as the late 1960s and the 1970s, the spiral triscele became very fashionable in Brittany, and, to some extent, in France and Spain, after Alan Stivell was wearing it around the

neck on TV shows and magazines. The fashion has extended then to commercial, political and cultural fields, used in Brittany as one of the main symbols (for tourism, products, etc.). In the north of Spain, the triskelion is used as a symbol of Galizan and Asturian nationalists. The triskele was used by Galician nationalists as early as 1930, although its use as a contemporary fashion icon only started during the Celtic revival of the 1970s. Currently, the Department of Agriculture of the devolved government of Galicia uses a triskele as its corporate logo.A similar symbol called lbaro by Cantabrian regionalist can be compared to the neighboring Basque culture's four-branched lauburu. A triskelion shape is the basis for the roundel of the Irish Air Corps[4] (unique among air force roundels). It is loosely based on the Flag of Ireland and traditional Celtic triskele boss designs. A triskelion pattern forms part of the United States Department of Transportation. The three comma shapes represent air, land, and sea transportation. The seal was adopted on February 1, 1967. Similar shapes (called "sam tageuk" in Korea and "tomoe" in Japan) are used in some East Asian cultures (one version was part of the official logo of the 1988 Summer Olympics). A triskelion shape was used in the design of a common plastic adapter for vinyl records, which allowed larger center-holed 45 rpm records to spin on players designed for smaller centerholed 33-1/3 rpm records. A fractal version of the triskelion, consisting of a large blue-silver raised dot with three curved arms of similar dots around it, is a major motif of the 2005 TV series Threshold. An episode of Star Trek, The Gamesters of Triskelion, takes place on the alien planet of Triskelion from Episode 16 of season 2. A Triskelion symbol was made into a fighting area. Triskelion is the name of the headquarters of The Ultimates, as seen in Marvel Comics. Reconstructionists and Neopagans The triskele, usually consisting of spirals, but also the "horned triskelion", is used by some Polytheistic Reconstructionist and Neopagan groups. As a Celtic symbol, it is found primarily of groups with a Celtic cultural orientation and, less frequently, can also be found in use by some Germanic Neopagan groups and eclectic or syncretic traditions such as Wicca. The spiral triskele is one of the primary symbols of Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism.[5] Celtic Reconstructionists use the symbol to represent a variety of triplicities in their cosmology and theology; it is also a favored symbol due to its association with the god Manannn mac Lir.[5] BDSM A form of the triskelion has been proposed as a BDSM Emblem by some BDSM groups, partly based on a description in the Story of O. The specific emblem design is meant to be shown with metallic spokes and circle, and three holes (not dots) within the design. POLITICAL EXTREMISTS Nazi Germany adopted a variation on the triskelion as the insignia for the 27th SS Volunteer Division Langemarck, composed mainly of Belgian volunteers. Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging

(AWB), a South African white supremacist paramilitary group, have used a flag featuring three black sevens that form a design reminiscent of the triskelion, in a white circle with a red background.

Gallery

Irish Air Corps Roundel.

Seal of the United States Department of Transportation.

Flag of the Ryukyu Islands from 1875 to 1879.

Flag of Ingushetia.

A symbol closely resembling the BDSM emblem.

The flag of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging.

The Official Seal of The Tau Gamma Phi Triskelion Grand Fraternity.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

45rpm plastic adapter.

The coat of arms of the German city of Fssen.

The triskele is an interesting and often seen Celtic symbol. It is one of the better
known and more used symbols throughout the Celtic areas and can be found on such things as tattoos, shields, stationary, clothing, pottery and glassware. In looks it resembles 3 spirals interconnected with no open ends and so it is a continuous line. It is sometimes referred to as the triple spiral by those who are not familiar with the Celtic term Triskele. You may also see it termed as the Tri-spiral. The spirals are all fluidly spiraling in the same direction. In Celtic symbolism it is related to the triquetra in looks and meaning. The triple spiral symbol is common in modern Celtic art as well as ancient art. The triskele was actually found to be used as a symbol before the Celts reached the island of Ireland and so it is very old and was more or less assimilated into Celtic culture. It is uncertain exactly where the very early inhabitants of Ireland came from before the Celts. They may have been migratory people traveling down through Scotland or Berber or seaman that came from the coast of Africa as some have speculated. Others say the early tribes in Ireland descend from the Milesians who went from Egypt to France and Spain and then Ireland. In the pagan realm the triskele is connected to the mother goddess. It is an invocation of the three material substance domains of earth, sky and water. Perhaps it also had a secondary meaning dealing with reincarnation since it is a continuous line possibly depicting the never ending cycle of life. It is obvious that the number three had some special meaning to the first users of the symbol. The most common form of the triskele Celtic symbol was found on a tomb from the Neolithic period, at Newgrange, near the town of Drogheda. The Neolithic period signaled the rise of stone tools, organized villages with crop growing and the presence of crafts such as weaving and pottery. This period occurred about 3200 BC at Newgrange where the Celtic symbol was found, and occurred at different times in other parts of the world. Scholars and old stories from the Newgrange area tell how the symbol may stand for the pregnancy cycle, as related to the sun. Legend says that Christianity in Ireland started there. Perhaps the tri-spiral symbol and the ideals of Christianity can be compared. The Newgrange tomb specifically was built to allow sun to shine into it during seasonal solstice periods. The sun was important to the ancient cultures. Since the sun forms somewhat of a clockwise spiral form Eat to West every

three months and there are 9 months in the average pregnancy, the Triskele shows three spirals tightly interlaced as in a comforting womb. The Triskele spirals appear to be in a clockwise fashion as well. There is another possibility as to the meaning of the Triskele. The Newgrange tomb was said to have been built for the ancient king Dagda Mor of the Tuatha De Danann tribe. This king had three sons. Perhaps each spiral stood for each son. See also: Valknut Triquetra Snoldelev Stone Fylfot Taegeuk Tomoe Gankyil Awen References: 1. ^ http://www.grifasi-sicilia.com/trinacria.htm 2. ^ For example the trislele on Achilles' round shield on an Attic late sixth-century hydria at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, illustrated in John Boardman, Jasper Griffin and Oswyn Murray, Greece and the Hellenistic World (Oxford History of the Classical World) vol. I (1988), p.50. 3. ^ Matthews, Jeff (2005) Symbols of Naples 4. ^ The Aircraft Encyclopedia by Roy Braybrook, ISBN 0-671-55337-2, p. 51 5. ^ a b Bonewits, Isaac (2006) Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism. New York, Kensington Publishing Group ISBN 0-8065-2710-2. p.132: [Among Celtic Reconstructionists] "...An Thrbhs Mhr (the great triple spiral) came into common use to refer to the three realms." Also p. 134: [On CRs] "Using Celtic symbols such as triskeles and spirals"

TAEGEUK
Hangul

Hanja

Revised Romanization

Taegeuk

McCuneReischauer

T'aegk

Taegeukgi, the flag of South Korea, with a blue and red Taegeuk in the center.

Sam-Taegeuk

Alternative Sam-Taegeuk Taegeuk is the Korean cognate of Taiji, the Taoist concept of yin and yang, from which all is actualized. In South Korea, the Taegeuk symbol is typically portrayed in blue (eum, or earth) and red (yang, or heaven). The red and blue are portrayed upside down to accommodate the harmony of nature. The blue (eum) on the flag is intended to pair up with the actual heaven (yang) and create a harmony with red, which would pair up with the actual earth (eum). An example would be have two magnets adjoining each other, "Taegeuk" symbol being in the middle. If the symbol is portrayed according to how humans view the world, red on the top would repel the earth and blue on the bottom would repel the heaven; this would break the harmony of nature. The Taegeuk symbol is most prominently displayed on South Korea's national flag, called the Taegeukgi (along with four of the eight Palgwae diagrams). Because of the Taegeuk's association with the national flag, it is often used as a patriotic symbol, as are the colors red and blue.

A popular variant in Korea is the Sam-Taegeuk (), which adds a yellow lobe, representing humanity, to the red and blue. The Sam-Taegeuk is frequently seen as a design on the face of fans. Taegeuk (as well as palgwe) is also a series of Taekwondo forms practiced by Kukkiwon member instructors and their students; see Taeguk (Taekwondo). Prior to the end of the 2004 Summer Paralympics, the International Paralympic Committee used three Tae-Geuks in its logo. It was replaced with three Agitos. The usage started at the 1988 Summer Paralympics in Seoul, using five Tae-Geuk designs arranged similarly to the Olympic Rings, with a similar five color set.

TRIPLE SPIRAL

A modern form of the triple spiral symbol

Triple spiral visible on entrance stone at Newgrange. The triple spiral or triskele is a Celtic and pre-Celtic symbol found on a number of Irish Megalithic and Neolithic sites, most notably inside the Newgrange passage tomb, on the entrance stone, and on some of the curbstones surrounding the mound. Believed by many to be an ancient symbol of pre-Celtic and Celtic beliefs, the triple spiral appears in various forms in pre-Celtic and Celtic art, with the earliest examples having been carved on pre-Celtic stone monuments, and later examples found in the Celtic Christian illuminated manuscripts of Insular art. The triple spiral was possibly the precursor to the later triskele design found in the manuscripts. What the symbol meant to the pagans who built Newgrange and other monuments is unknown. In more recent history, Celtic Christians have sometimes used it to represent the

Christian Trinity. Neopagan religions such as Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism and Wicca use the symbol to represent a variety of triplicities from their belief systems. The triple spiral is one of the main symbols of Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism, often standing for the "three realms" - Land, Sea and Sky, or for one of a number of deities who are described in the lore as "threefold" or triadic.[1] The god Manannn is probably most often the one symbolized by the triskele, though some also use it for the goddess Brighid. Some Celticinspired Wiccans also use the triple spiral symbol, most often to represent the concept of the triple goddess. According to Uriel's Machine by Knight and Lomas (2003) the triple spiral may represent the nine month period of human pregnancy, since the sun takes a fourth of a year to go from the celestial equator (an equinox) to extreme north or south declination (a solstice), and vice versa. During each three-month period, the sun's path across the sky appears to form a closely-wound quasi-helical shape, which can be likened to a spiral, so that three spirals could represent nine months, providing an explanation for a link between fertility and the triplespiral symbol.

Version with three thick single spirals.

Spiral triskelion, occasionally used as a Christian Trinitarian symbol.

One decorative version of a "wheeled" form of the triple spiral symbol, sometimes considered a solar symbol.

A spiral triskelion with a hollow triangle at its center. References: ^ Bonewits, Isaac (2006) Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism. New York, Kensington Publishing Group ISBN 0-8065-2710-2. p.132: [Among Celtic Reconstructionists] "...An Thrbhs Mhr (the great triple spiral) came into common use to refer to the three realms." Also p. 134: [On CRs ] "Using Celtic symbols such as triskeles and spirals External links: Triple Spiral Animation by David Chow

Triskelion Celtic Symbol Meaning

In a nutshell, the triskelion Celtic symbol meaning deals with competition and man's progress. The Greek term triskelion literally means "three-legged," and appropriately, this sign looks very much like three legs running. The triskelion (also referred to as triskele, triquetra or fylfot) Celtic symbol meaning holds two major components of symbolism. First Component: When we observe this symbol, we are taken with the concept of motion. All three branches (legs, protrusions, angles) are positioned in such a way so as to make the symbol appear as if it is in constant forward motion. This is no accident as this feeling of motion in this symbol represents: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. action cycles progress revolution competition moving forward

Second Component: The three protrusions (legs, angles, branches, etc) are of significant symbolic importance. However, depending upon the era, region, culture, mythological history, etc...symbologists can have a challenging time defining the exact symbolic meaning of the three protrusions. The various representations of the three protrusions found in the triskelion include: Spirit, Mind, Body Father, Son, Holy Ghost Mother, Father, Child Past, Present, Future Power, Intellect, Love Creator, Destroyer, Sustainer Creation, Preservation, Destruction All of these (and still yet more) can be designated for each of the protrustions found in the triskelion - it is simply up to the observer (or originating culture) to proffer up these meanings. The combination of these two components (motion and triad attributes) lead us to the conclusion that this Celtic symbol meaning tells a story of forward motion in the endeavor to reach understanding (within the context of one of the many triad dynamics above listed). This prominent Celtic symbols may also represent the three Celtic worlds: The Otherworld: Where spirits, gods and goddesses live. The Mortal World: Where you and I live along with plants and animals. The Celestial World: Where unseen energies live and move about. Like the forces of sun, moon, wind and water.

An interesting side note - the number three is a powerful energy for seemingly infinite reasons. One such representation of number three deals with the three primary measure-marks within the phases of the moon (new, half, full). This is a worthy point because most lunar creatures are depicted as only having three legs in Alchemical and early European esoteric art. When we add lunar implications to the meaning of the triskelion we are dealing with: Mystery Feminine Intuition Subtleness Subconscious Spirituality Illumination Hidden desire

As you can see, the Celtic symbol meaning of the triskelion is more far reaching than just "three-legged." When we combine the variables listed here with the concept of motion and evolution and illumniation, we find that the Celtic symbol meaning of the triskelion has much broader connatations.

In short, the sum of this Celtic symbol meaning is: Personal growth Human development Spiritual expansion

The History and Meaning of the Celtic Triskele Symbol Also Triple Goddess, Triple Spiral
The Triskele symbol, or triple spiral - three spirals radiating from a common center - is one of the most popular, and ancient symbols of our time. It has been found in the traditional form, or slight variations, in a number of cultures throughout the world. Greece, the Hopi of North America, and in preColumbian artifacts in Central America. The earliest Celtic Triskele was found in the ruins of a Bronze Age temple in Ireland, and is believed by some scholars to have evolved from the triskellion, which looks like three legs from a common center. The triskele has also come to be associated with the Triple Goddess going back to pre-Christian times, but has also been found in illuminated Manuscripts created by early Christian monks. The Triple Goddess symbolism, maiden-mother-crone, is also represented as a moon in three phases. Judging from early Celtic symbols, the Celts gave great significance to things coming in threes: earth, water, sky; body, mind, spirit; birth, death, rebirth, past, present, future; these all have been attributed to the Celtic symbols with three elements. Some of our modern interpretations of the meaning of the triskele are that it symbolizes the cycles of life in one form or another. Because the triskele is often drawn using one continuous line, it has come to represent the unending and continuous movement of life. The spiral has always captivated our imagination, the triskele with its three spirals remains among the most popular Celtic symbols probably for the same reason.

Celtic Symbols and their meanings

The spiral was found on many Dolmans and gravesites. Its true meaning is not known for sure, but many of these symbols were found as far as Ireland and France. It is believed to represent the travel from the inner life to the outer soul or higher spirit forms; the concept of growth, expansion, and cosmic energy, depending on the culture in which it is used. To the ancient inhabitants of Ireland, the spiral was used to represent their sun.

A basic element in Western ideography, the clockwise spiral (starting from the middle) is strongly associated with water, power, independent movement, and migrations of tribes. The sign's association with water may rather focus recurring rainy seasons, than water in general. Well in accordance with the law of the polarity of meanings of elementary graphs also often seems to denote the sun. But maybe not the ordinary sun, but the eclipsed sun. See the entry below. As stated in the entry of the basic graphic elements the dot and the spiral were used by are found carved in

man already 24,000 years ago. But thereafter the first instances of rock faces not more than about 5,000 years ago.

Be that as it may, one finds on discos from Crete from around 2000 B.C., and as an old symbol for potential power in Tibet. It also appears among rock carvings in Utah.

A more circular and closer drawn version of the above entry sign is seen on many neolithic rock carvings. Until recently the meaning of this ideogram eluded researchers, but things have now changed. On rock carvings in Scandinavia one often finds signs which look like a strange type of boats or sleighs with short vertical lines on them. They have hitherto been interpreted as representing people. Together with them a lot of small, round signs, and the ideogram , can be seen. Why would people, thousands of years ago, hire rock carvers to work for long hours with the carving of these, seemingly rather meaningless pictures of ships or sleighs together with small, round signs and , in hard rock, as if they were messages important enough for posterity to be made to last thousands of years? Why did neolithic men think these pictures should be conveyed over eons to posterity? A breakthrough in the understandning of these strange ideograms seems to have been made in 1991. An archaeologist got the idea that the small, round signs on those rock carvings could be signs for stars in the sky. He fed the structures of some of the rock carvings into a computer and had the computer to compare them with representations of the constantly changing structure of the constellations of the brightests stars of the sky, century for century for some thousands of years. What he found was that the rock carvings were documentations of the configurations of the visible planets and the brightest of the fixed stars at times of total solar eclipses. Thus the sign might mean the eclipsed sun.

Another idea states that the loosely wound anti-clockwise spiral represent the large summer sun and the tightly wound, clockwise spiral their shrinking winter sun.

A variation of the preceding entry sign consists in fact of two interconnected , that is spirals with clockwise rotation (from the center seen). , made up not by lines but by rows of dots, has been found engraved on an amulett of mammoth tooth which is 24,000 years old, and thus must have been engraved by Cro-Magnon mammoth hunters. The sign , often used to denote the sun, is at the center of the amulet, with two on each side of it. During the Bronze Age was an often used graphic structure for decorations of artefacts of all types. In ancient Greece it was common on vases and amphoras, and often signified water or the sea. An older variation on the same theme is , found on rock engravings from the Bronze Age in Scania, Sweden. This variation, however, is much more graphically sophisticated, as you will soon realize if you try to draw it.

Another theory: a double spiral is used to represent the equinoxes, when day and night are of equal length.

This sign structure is uncommon because it is closed. Since it is very difficult to draw, it probably had magical significance. It is often found on vessels and representations from the Bronze Age. This instance is found on a rock carving from Scania, Sweden.

This structure is called the spiral of life and was found in the remnants of an old temple from the Bronze Age in Ireland. The sign is drawn in one single line without beginning or end. Compare with , an old Celtic sign that was also used in pre-Columbian America, and in Greece and neighboring countries in antiquity. See The triple spiral denotes the Threefold Goddess. The circle, spiral and wheel are all powerful symbols representing the cycle of life, death and rebirth, including the seasons of the year.

The ancient structure has been found both in pre-Columbian America and in Bronze Age Europe. In Europe it is especially associated with the Celtic tribes. These symbols are called triskele or triskelion.

The Triskele is used to symbolize the cycles of life with in the three fold, or three spheres of influnce in the material world. The three spheres (Land, Sea and Sky) represents the three aspects of the material world that are contained in every object. Each aspect ever flowing outward and always returning to the point from which it started.

This symbol is also used to symbolize the Druidic Threefold Sister Goddess: Fotla/Eiru/Banba. Ireland, or Erin, is named after Eriu. It also symbolizes the Wiccan Threefold Mother Goddess: Maiden/Mother/Crone. The Triskele was a representation of the importance of the number three.

Frank Waters, an anthropologist who has studied the Hopi Indians and their culture, writes that the mirror image of the preceding entry sign was used by the Hopis in Arizona. Its spectrum of meaning seems to have been centred around the concept of several returns or homecomings. Waters has interpreted this symbol as tribal migration, cyclical in nature, by a people consisting of a few large tribes or clans.

Valknut

The Stora Hammar stone, where the Valknut occurs in the most central and predominant position, appears alongside images interpreted as Odin with a characteristic spear shunting another figure into a burial mound while a raven is overhead and another man is hanged.

Odin with Sleipnir, Valknuts are drawn beneath the horse (Tngelgarda stone)

The Valknut (Old Norse valr, "slain warriors" + knut, "knot") is a symbol consisting of three interlocked triangles, and appears on various Germanic objects. A number of theories have been proposed for its significance. The name Valknut is an unattested modern invention used to describe the symbol, and was not used contemporaneously when the symbol was used. The Valknut has been compared to the three-horned symbol found on the 9th century Snoldelev Stone, and may be related to it.[1] Archaeological record The symbol appears in a unicursal form, such as on the 7th century Tngelgarda stone on the island of Gotland, Sweden. The symbols also appears in tricursal "brunnian linked" form, such as on the Lrbro stone, also on Gotland, Sweden, as well as upon a ring found in the River Nene in England, and on a bedpost found within the 834 Oseberg ship burial from Slagen, Norway. The only traditionally and historically attested forms found so far have been the Borromean tricursal, and the triquetra unicursal. Theories Hrungnir's Heart Chapter 17 of the 13th century Prose Edda book Skldskaparml contains the following description of the heart of the Jtunn Hrungnir; "Hrungnir had a heart that was famous. It was made of hard stone with three sharp-pointed corners just like the carved symbol hrungnishjarta [Hrungnir's Heart]."[2] Comparisons have been made between this symbol description and the symbol known as the Valknut.[1] Odin and mental binds Hilda Ellis Davidson theorizes a connection between the valknut and "mental binds": For instance, beside the figure of Odin on his horse shown on several memorial stones there is a kind of knot depicted, called the valknut, related to the triskele. This is thought to symbolize the power of the god to bind and unbind, mentioned in the poems and elsewhere. Odin had the power to lay bonds upon the mind, so that men became helpless in battle, and he could also loosen the tensions of fear and strain by his gifts of battlemadness, intoxication, and inspiration.[3] Davidson says that similar symbols are found beside figures of wolves and ravens on "certain cremation urns" from Anglo-Saxon cemeteries in East Anglia. Davidson says that Odin's connection to cremation is known, and that it does not seem unreasonable to connect with Woden, the god of the dead in Anglo-Saxon England. Additionally, Davidson proposes further connections between Odin's role as bringer of ecstasy with the etymology of the names Wodan (related to wut "high mental excitement, fury, intoxication, or possession") and the later Oinn (from the adjective r meaning "raging, furious, intoxicated").[3] Other

Due to the Norwegian name for the symbol, valknuter, and the fact that the symbol appears on picture stones with Odin and on burial gifts in the Oseberg ship burial, Rudolf Simek states that the symbol may have been be associated with religious practices surrounding death.[1] Some speculation has been put forward relating the Suebian knot hair style recorded by Tacitus to the valknut.[4] Topology The Valknut is topologically equivalent to either the Borromean rings, the trefoil knot, or (in modern use only) a closed 3-link chain, depending on the particular artistic depiction:

The Valknut as Borromean rings (Knot Atlas L6a4)

The Valknut as trefoil knot or triquetra (unicursal) (Knot Atlas 3_1)

The Valknut as closed 3-link chain (Knot Atlas L6n1)

As Borromean rings, on Stora Hammar stone

Modern use The Valknut symbol plays a role in modern Germanic Neopagan faiths, where numerous explanations and interpretations of the symbol are given. The Swedish pulp and paper manufacturer and consumer goods company Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget uses a triquetra Valknut as their logo, which can be commonly seen on many products produced by the company. The symbol has also been used by a number of neo-Nazi groups.[5] The Valknut symbol was also used on the cover for the 2006 album With Oden on Our Side by Amon Amarth. It is portrayed with the bases of the triangles facing upwards behind a silhouette of Odin riding Sleipnir into Valhalla.
Notes: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Simek (2007:163). Byock (2001:88). Davidson (1990:147). the knots of death by Alby Stone According to the Anti-defamation Leagues website: [1]. References: 1. Byock, Jesse (Trans.) (2006). The Prose Edda. Penguin Classics. ISBN 0140447555 2. Davidson, H.R.Ellis (1990). Gods and myths of Northern Europe. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-013627-4. 3. Simek, Rudolf (2007) translated by Angela Hall. Dictionary of Northern Mythology. D.S.Brewer. ISBN 0859915131.

BORROMEAN RINGS

In mathematics, the Borromean rings consist of three topological circles which are linked and form a Brunnian link, i.e., removing any ring results in two unlinked rings. Mathematical properties Although the typical picture of the Borromean rings (left picture) may lead one to think the link can be formed from geometrically round circles, they cannot be. (Freedman & Skora 1987) proves why a certain class of links including the Borromean links cannot be exactly circular. Alternatively, this can be seen from

considering the link diagram: if one assumes that circles 1 and 2 touch at their two crossing points, then they either lie in a plane or a sphere. In either case, the third circle must pass through this plane or sphere four times, without lying in it, which is impossible; see (Lindstrm & Zetterstrm 1991). It is, however, true that one can use ellipses (center picture). These may be taken to be of arbitrarily small eccentricity, i.e. no matter how close to being circular their shape may be, as long as they are not perfectly circular, they can form Borromean links if suitably positioned: for example, Borromean rings made from thin circles of elastic metal wire will bend.

Standard diagram of the Borromean rings.

A realization of the Borromean rings as ellipses.

Coat of arms showing padlocks locked in Borromean rings configuration. Linking There are a number of ways of seeing that the Borromean rings cannot be unlinked. Simplest is that the fundamental group of the complement of two unlinked circles is the free group on two generators, a and b, by the Seifertvan Kampen theorem, and then the third loop has the class of the commutator, [a, b] = aba1b1, as one can see from the link diagram: over one, over the next, back under the first, back under the second. This is non-trivial in the fundamental group, and thus the Borromean rings are linked.

Another way is that the cohomology of the complement supports a non-trivial Massey product, which is not the case for the unlink. This is a simple example of the Massey product and further, the algebra corresponds to the geometry: a 3-fold Massey product is a 3-fold product which is only defined if all the 2-fold products vanish, which corresponds to the Borromean rings being pairwise unlinked (2-fold products vanish), but linked overall (3-fold product does not vanish). Hyperbolic The Borromean rings are a hyperbolic link: the complement of the Borromean rings in the 3-sphere admits a complete hyperbolic metric of finite volume. The canonical (Epstein-Penner) polyhedral decomposition of the complement consists of two ideal octahedra. Connection to braid

The standard 3-strand braid corresponds to the Borromean rings. If one cuts the Borromean rings, one obtains one iteration of the standard braid; conversely, if one ties together the ends of (one iteration of) a standard braid, one obtains the Borromean rings. Just as removing one Borromean ring unlinks the remaining two, removing one strand of the standard braid unbraids the other two: they are the basic Brunnian link and Brunnian braid, respectively. In the standard link diagram, the Borromean rings are ordered non-transitively, in a rock-paper-scissors order. Using the colors above, these are red over yellow, yellow over blue, blue over red and thus after removing any one ring, for the remaining two, one is above the other and they can be unlinked. Similarly, in the standard braid, each strand is above one of the others and below the other. History of origin and depictions

Valknut on Stora Hammar stone.

The Borromean rings as a symbol of the Christian Trinity, from a 13th-century manuscript.

A monkey's fist knot.

The Discordian "mandala", containing five Borromean rings configurations. The name "Borromean rings" comes from their use in the coat of arms of the aristocratic Borromeo family in Italy. The link itself is much older and has appeared in Ghandarva (Afghan) Buddhist art from around the second century C.E., and in the form of the valknut on Norse image stones dating back to the 7th century. The Borromean rings have been used in different contexts to indicate strength in unity, e.g. in religion or art. In particular, some have used the design to symbolize the Trinity. The psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan famously found inspiration in the Borromean rings as a model for his topology of human subjectivity, with each ring representing a fundamental Lacanian component of reality (the "real", the "imaginary", and the "symbolic"). The Borromean rings are also the logo of Ballantine beer.[1] Partial Borromean rings In medieval and renaissance Europe, a number of visual signs are found which consist of three elements which are interlaced together in the same way that the Borromean rings are shown interlaced (in their conventional two-dimensional depiction), but the individual elements are not closed loops. Examples of such symbols are the Snoldelev stone horns and the Diana of Poitiers crescents. An example with three distinct elements is the logo of Sport Club Internacional. Similarly, a monkey's fist knot is essentially a 3-dimensional representation of the Borromean rings, albeit with three layers, in most cases. Balancing knives Using the pattern in the incomplete Borromean rings, one can balance three knives on three supports, such as three bottles or glasses, providing a support in the middle for a fourth bottle or glass.[2] Multiple Borromean rings Some knot-theoretic links contain multiple Borromean rings configurations; one five-loop link of this type is used as a symbol in Discordianism, based on a depiction in the Principia Discordia. Molecular Borromean rings

Crystal structure of molecular Borromean rings reported by Stoddart et al. Science 2004, 304, 13081312. Molecular Borromean rings are the molecular counterparts of Borromean rings, which are mechanically-interlocked molecular architectures. In 1997, biologists Chengde Mao and coworkers of New York University succeeded in constructing molecular Borromean rings from DNA (Nature, volume 386, page 137, March 1997). In 2003, chemist Fraser Stoddart and coworkers at UCLA utilised coordination chemistry to construct molecular Borromean rings in one step from 18 components. This work was published in Science 2004, 304, 13081312.
References:

P. R. Cromwell, E. Beltrami and M. Rampichini, "The Borromean Rings", Mathematical Intelligencer 20 no 1 (1998) 5362. Freedman, Michael H.; Skora, Richard (1987), "Strange Actions of Groups on Spheres", Journal of Differential Geometry 25: 7598. Lindstrm, Bernt; Zetterstrm, Hans-Olov (1991), "Borromean Circles are Impossible", American Mathematical Monthly 98: 340341, http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=00029890%28199104%2998%3A4%3C340%3ABCAI%3E2.0.CO%3B2-3 (subscription required). This article explains why Borromean links cannot be exactly circular. Brown, R. and Robinson, J., "Borromean circles", Letter, American Math. Monthly, April, (1992) 376377. This article shows how Borromean squares exist, and have been made by John Robinson (sculptor), who has also given other forms of this structure. Chernoff, W. W., "Interwoven polygonal frames". (English summary)15th British Combinatorial Conference (Stirling, 1995). Discrete Math. 167/168 (1997), 197 204. This article gives more general interwoven polygons.

The emblem of Diane de Poitiers, three interlaced crescents.