Usage
The Trefoil Knot is included in Knots 3D more for fun than anything since it can't really be tied! So why include it? Well, in the author's view the simplicity, symmetry, and beauty of this classic knot made it worthy of inclusion. It has relevance in the arts, religion, and mathematics.Art: The Trefoil Knot is named after the three-leaf clover (or Trefoil) plant. The Trefoil is a common motif in iconography and the visual arts. For example, the common form of the Celtic Triquetra symbol is a Trefoil, as are some versions of the Germanic Valknut. The Triquetra is often found in Insular art, most notably metal work and in ancient manuscripts like the Book of Kells. It is also found in similar artwork on Celtic crosses and slabs from the early Christian period. In modern art, the woodcut “Knots” by M. C. Escher depicts three trefoil knots whose solid forms are twisted in different ways.
Religion: The Trefoil/Triquetra has been used as a singular symbol for the past two centuries by Celtic Christians, Pagans and agnostics as a sign of special things and persons that are threefold. The Triquetra has been used extensively on Christian sculpture, vestments, book arts and stained glass. It has been used on the title page and binding of some editions of the New King James Version of the Bible.
Mathematics: In topology, a branch of mathematics, the Trefoil knot is the simplest example of a nontrivial knot (meaning that it is not possible to “untie” a Trefoil knot in three dimensions without cutting it.). As the simplest knot, the Trefoil is fundamental to the study of mathematical knot theory, which has diverse applications in topology, geometry, physics, and chemistry.
Also known as
- Triquetra
- Valknut
