The History and Meaning of the Triquetra, or Celtic Trinity Knot

The triquetra is an ancient symbol made up of three half circles connecting at the tips. This Celtic symbol is also known as the Celtic trinity knot or Celtic triangle. It origins have been attributed to the early Celtic people, various pagan groups and later to Christianity.

The triquetra has been found in northern Europe on large stones dating back to around 1,000 AD. The triquetra symbol has also been found in the Christian illustrated manuscript, the Book of Kells from the time period 800 AD. Earlier findings of the triquetra were on ancient rune stones in northern Europe, and on coins from early Germanic origins.

Celtic Symbol Meanings:

For Pagans, the triquetra represents the threefold nature of reality in its various forms. The Divine Feminine - maiden, mother & crone; life, death and rebirth, and the three forces of nature represented as water, air and earth.

For Christians, the triquetra has always been believed to symbolize the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Because the three arcs of the circles are equal, it represents the equality of the three.

The triquetra has taken on a bit of pop symbolism, due to its use on the television show "Charmed." The symbol represented the Power of Three, much as it does in early traditions.

Today the triquetra symbol is one of the most popular Celtic symbols, and versions of it are made into Celtic pendants, Celtic earrings, Celtic necklaces and many other Celtic designs including stained glass, soap, etched glass and more.

Visit: Unique Celtic Jewelry for a greater selection of unique Celtic jewelry of all kinds.

Unique Celtic Jewelry Gifts at uniquecelticjewelry.com

We're taking lots of orders lately for unique gifts. Celtic knots, Triskeles, Triquetras, Claddaghs, Celtic jewelry in hand carved mammoth tusk and more. Celtic earrings, pendants, necklaces, brooches and rings can be found for your special someone.

Celtic jewelry is the perfect gift for your Irish, Scottish and English friends, or for anyone who appreciates the sharp graphic lines and intrigue of Celtic knot designs.

Look for our 10% Off discount club link, and save on your first order!

New items now on uniquecelticjewelry.com

We have been working hard at getting many of the Celtic Jewelry items that you've come to see at our shows up online.

Take a look at our Celtic Pendants category, for instance, where we have organized all the styles in easy to find category headings. The same goes for Celtic Earrings, Claddagh Jewelry and our exclusive Gaelyn Bram Designer Celtic Jewelry.

If you click on the link, "Want 10% Off?", you can sign up for our Discount Club and receive 10% off of everything you purchase.

We have also started putting up some of our Celtic Rings, first off we've chosen to start with the popular Claddagh Rings. We have some great styles at affordable prices in Blue Topaz, Citrine, Pink CZ, Malachite, and plain silver. Look for more soon.

That's about all I have time for today.

Take care!

Loriah Celtic Necklace - overstocked and drastically discounted

Greetings, In December of 2006, one of the major freight services lost a order of 40 necklaces we had shipped out to a vendor. After many phone calls trying to track them down, we gave up on it, and eventually produced the same necklaces again. Here's a photo to the left.

Fast forward to last week. They showed up with no explanation.

So, here we are with about twice as many of these beautiful Tribal-Celtic necklaces, in sterling silver and black onyx, than we would normally carry in stock.

What this means to you, is that we are drastically discounting them for the next few weeks.

We normally sell this necklace at shows, and in our online store for $129.00. We have lowered the price to $99. You can Click Here for a link to this necklace on our uniquecelticjewelry.com site.

Stay tuned for more specials as we get closer to the holidays.

Also check out a new Celtic Jewelry site.

Celtic Fest in Chicago - Celtic Jewelry Post Show

Thanks to all our Celtic jewelry clients, and others, who we're pulling for no rain this weekend. It's rained two out of the last three years, and needless to say, it puts a damper on things at an outdoor show when buckets of rain are coming down.

We shipped 200 lbs. of booth gear, and dragged 6 suitcases full of other Celtic Fest neccessities along on the plane. It's always a crap shoot as to whether everything will show up, and if it does, will it be in one piece?

It did, and it was.

We enjoyed seeing those Celtic jewelry customers from past years that came by to check out the latest designs, and thanks for wearing our jewelry to the event. If you've purchased Celtic jewelry from us in the past, and don't receive our emails, get in touch. We offer a 15% discount off of anything we sell to those who can repeat the secret password we email out before each show. You can find the signup box at the bottom of our home page at uniquecelticjewelry.com.

Our new Hand Carved Mammoth Tusk Celtic Jewelry was very well received in Chicago. We unveiled several new designs including a Celtic dragon, Celtic knotwork, Tree of Life, Rose, and some new versions of old favorites such as the Twin Goddesses and Three Celtic Horses. We're working at getting all of these up on our new site.

We discovered a Thai restaurant we didn't know about right around the corner from the Congress Hotel, the Thai Spoon. Good food, including Sushi, at great prices.

We look forward to seeing our Chicago friends again next year if all goes as planned. Until then we hope to see you online.

Celtic Fest in Chicago - Celtic Jewelry pre show

Anyone who has any pull with the weather divas, please put in a good word. We've had rain the past two years at Celtic Fest Chicago, and the weather report is looking threatening again this year. Last year we had one foot of water in the back of our booth after hours of downpour, and it's less fun showing our Celtic jewelry to soaked Celts.

On the up side, Celtic Fest Chicago rocks as a show for crafters. The people of Chicago recognize quality and are willing to pay a fair price for it.

Chicago is also one of the best cities I've ever been in for Food. We'll be dropping in at Vong's Thai Kitchen for some Asian Fusion cuisine, and some others of Chicago's finest food establishments as well.

So, come on out, hear some great Celtic music, have a brew or two, and peruse the fine craft booths. You'll find silver Celtic jewelry (Sean's Celtic Creations, Michael Hayman & Reflective Images are our favorite "other" jewelers), clothing, art, photos and some other very unique Celtic items.

If you can't make it to the show, kindly visit us at uniquecelticjewelry.com and see what we stuffed our luggage with for the 6 hour flight from Ashland, Oregon to Chicago.

I'll be posting about the show next week, so if you miss it, tune in then for all the news.

Scottish Highland Games in Pleasanton 2007

We had a new booth location at the Pleasanton Scottish Highland Games this year, hoping to reach a few more people with our Celtic jewelry line, but the heat kept many people away. It was nice being in an air conditioned building for the first time, but when it's over 100 degrees out, many Scottish folk stay home.

The musical entertainment was great again this year with the Tribal Celtic band Wicked Tinkers, and the eclectic Celtic band Brother, from Australia.

Due to an intense lightening and hail storm as we were packing up the RV, I left 25% of our Celtic jewelry stock at home. All of the hand carved woolly mammoth designs I had just finished were left by the electric door in the studio. After a lot of kicking myself in the ass over it, I drove 6 hours and picked it up after the games closed down on Saturday evening.

Such is the life of a traveling crafter. There are so many things to keep track of, deal with, handle and anticipate. I guess it beats having a day job, but at times like that I'm not always sure.

It was good to see some of our faithful clients again in person, which is one of the main reasons we enjoy the shows. Many show up wearing some of the designer Celtic jewelry pieces we've produced, and check to see some of the new designs.

The Pleasanton Scottish Games is the largest Scottish Games in the world I'm told. If you haven't attended, it's worth a visit, but, try and make it when the weather is a bit more mild.

Until then, as always, you can find us at uniquecelticjewelry.com.

The True Meaning of Celtic Jewelry Symbols

I realize that this title is a little, shall we say, provocative. I do confess, right now, that I don't have the definitive line on ancient meanings. As a designer of Celtic jewelry for many years, I have several thoughts on how the meaning of these designs can be reconciled, in the present time, with regard to the history of Celtic jewelry symbols.

Perhaps now more than ever, people are searching for meaning in all aspects of their lives.

The first question one usually hears about Celtic jewelry is, "What does it mean?"

To even begin to answer that question you must ask one of your own; "From what era would you prefer your meaning?"

It's wise to remember that, as with all things, meanings change over time. Gold and silver Celtic jewelry dates back to 2000 B.C.E., so it is highly likely that their meanings have evolved over time. The ancestral meaning ascribed to Celtic interlace, or other symbols, is likely to differ from those inferred by modern interpreters of Celtic designs due to the time frames and context of their assessments.

Celtic art is unique in the sense that it is a living tradition that also allows us to connect with our distant past. Trying to find a single meaning in a piece of Celtic jewelry ignores much of its history, and is probably impossible in any event. The fact that this is a living tradition that can veer from original meaning, means it need not wait for official interpretation of what it all means before new designs are created. If a new artist claims that his heart shaped pendant design with knotwork stands for endless love, then it does.

The new designs may not meet with academic appreciation, but when there is no real evidence to the contrary, the Celtic symbol meanings of today's creations should merit some validity in our modern context.

There is solid evidence of Celtic spirals and other symbols used in ancient days, but little evidence of them predates the first Christian Celtic art which appeared in about 450 C.E.

Monks transcribing sacred texts in 7th century have documented Celtic interlace, also known as knotwork, in their illustrated manuscripts. The greatest examples of high Celtic art that gave growth to Celtic design today are The Book of Kells, Lindisfarne Gospels, and the Book of Durrow. All three are exquisitely adorned books. Even these manuscripts tell us little directly, leaving each reader to interpret them for themselves.

The definitive original meaning of many Celtic symbols remain unclear in the thoughts of many historians and scholars, as there are few hard facts pertaining to their time line and origin. (Note: The meaning that we have found to be most believable, and most often repeated is "The interconnectedness of all things".)

Celtic jewelry and art appreciators do not have to stick to academics for the meanings of Celtic jewelry. The creative and emotional appeal of these designs attract us. Their importance is in how they reflect our individuality and how they make us feel.

The potential revelation of a secret significance ,contained within the shape of Celtic symbols, adds to their mystery. And a manuscript may be interpreted correctly some day, once and for all, to reveal all the mysteries.

I recommend that until that day, we accept that the meanings of Celtic symbols in jewelry are those that we currently hold in our hearts and in our minds. Celtic jewelry will probably gain new meanings in the future thanks to the continuing evolution of consensus among those of us who care, so, perhaps those in the distant future looking for meaning will have more to go on.

News and updates for friends of uniquecelticjewelry.com

I've been resisting doing this, mostly because of time issues. Many of you have wondered about our new Celtic jewelry designs, and the production of the Celtic jewelry designs that you've come to know and love, but have sold out in recent weeks. So, this space will be a good place for us to let you know what's happening here.

Tune in from time to time, or we'll let you know via email if there is anything important to impart.

Take care!