Illustrated Architecture Dictionary
Triquetra
try KWETRA
Ornament composed of three half circles or ellipses crossed and joined together at their ends
Ornament of three interlaced arcs or lobes or vesicae piscis, essentially triangular in shape.
Etymology: Latin: tri = 3; quetrus = cornered
Found in pagan Germanic and Celtic art. For pagans, the triquetra represents the threefold nature of the Goddess as virgin, mother and crone. It also symbolizes life, death, and rebirth and the three forces of nature: earth, air, and water.
In Christianity, a symbol of the Trinity.
Found in the Book of Kells
Trinity knot: Triquetra interlaced with circle
Examples:
- Illustration above: Wikipedia
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