Celtic
Symbols from ancient times
The
following symbols are included in this section. The triquetra, The Sheela-na-gig, The Celtic Cross, The Spiral, The
Green Man, The Celtic Knot, Continuuing looping symbol.
The triquetra- Its original
meaning was simply "triangle" and it has been used to refer to various
three-cornered shapes. Nowadays, it has come to refer exclusively to a
certain more complicated shape formed of three vesicae piscis,
sometimes with an added circle in or around it. Its original meaning
was simply "triangle" and it has been used to refer to various
three-cornered shapes. Nowadays, it has come to refer exclusively to a
certain more complicated shape formed of three vesicae piscis,
sometimes with an added circle in or around it. The triquetra is often
found in Insular art, most notably metal work and in illuminated
manuscripts like the Book of Kells. The fact that the triquetra very
rarely stood alone in medieval Celtic has cast a reasonable doubt on
its use as a symbol in context where it was used primarily as a space
filler or ornament in much more complex compositions. But Celtic art
lives on as both a living folk art tradition and through several
revivals. Here are some other versions of the
Triquetra Symbol. |
 Triquetra
composed exactly of three overlapping Vesica piscis symbols. |
 Triquetra in blue as part of an
interlaced Christian Trinitarian decorative symbol. |
|
 Triquetra interlaced with circle as Christian Trinitarian
symbol (a "Trinity knot"). |
 The cross of triquetras or Carolingian
Cross. |
 The Sheela na Gig - The name was first
published in the Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 1840-44, as a
local name for a carving once present on a church gable wall in
Rochestown, County Tipperary, Ireland; the name was also recorded in
1840 by John O'Donovan, an official of the Ordnance Survey of Ireland,
referring to a figure on a church in Kiltinane, County Tipperary. There
is controversy regarding the origin and meaning of the name, as the
name is not directly translatable into Irish. Alternative spellings of
"Sheela" may sometimes be encountered; they include Sheila, Síle
and Síla. The name "Seán-na-Gig" was coined by Jack
Roberts for the ithyphallic male counterpart of the Sheela which is
fairly rare in Ireland but is much more common on the continent. The
Sheela na Gig is a fertility figure. |
 A Celtic cross is a symbol that
combines a cross with a ring surrounding the intersection. The symbol
is associated with Celtic Christianity, although it has older,
pre-Christian origins. Such crosses form a major part of Celtic art. A
standing Celtic cross, made of stone and often richly ornamented, is
called a high cross or Irish Cross. Celtic crosses may have had origins
in the early Coptic church.
In Ireland, it is a popular myth that the Celtic cross was introduced
by Saint Patrick or possibly Saint Declan during his time converting
the pagan Irish. |
 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. |
 The Green Man is often perceived as an ancient Celtic
symbol. In Celtic mythology, he is a god of spring and summer. He
disappears and returns year after year, century after century, enacting
themes of death and resurrection, the ebb and flow of life and
creativity. The Arthurian legend of Sir Gawain, The Green Knight, is a
notable image of the Green Man from the Middle Ages. Gawain had a green
helmet, green armor, green shield... even a green horse. When he was
decapitated, he continued to live. |
 The Celtic Knot - Celtic knots are a variety of (mostly
endless) knots and stylized graphical representations of knots used for
decoration, adopted by the ancient Celts. These knots are most known
for their adaptation for use in the ornamentation of Christian
monuments and manuscripts like the 8th century Book of Kells and the
Lindisfarne Gospels.
There is no evidence to indicate that a knot had any specific
philosophical or religious significance beyond perhaps the most
obvious, that being the intricacy capable in the work of humans, itself
reflective of the intricacy of Natural forms. |
|
|
