The Celtic history and is symbolism is intriguing. In several cases the symbolism has evolvrd over years of story telling. Celtic jewelry appears to increase in popularity every year, and with it there’s more facination in the stories behind the designs.
Some of the symbolism can be followed back to tales e.g the Claddagh. This is a heart, wearing a crown and being held on each side by hands.
The Claddagh was initially made by Richard Joyce for his sweetheart. Richard was forced into slavery and on the release of the slaves he returned to his local Eire to find that the girl of his dreams had waited for him. He presented her with a ring he had made; this was the first ever Claddagh. The hands represent their fellowship, the heart their love and the crown is the faithfulness and respect that avowed love deserves.
Nonetheless not all designs have such outlined or accepted stories to them. Across Eire you can see the Celtic crosses. These are a cross with a circle around the center of the cross. One of the most well-liked stories connected to this is that St Patrick created this symbol to show there might be harmony between the Druid symbol of a circle and the Christian symbol of the cross .For different folks the circle has different interpretations. To some it is the sun and the bringer of life, while to others it symbolizes continuity with no beginning and no end.
The least outlined of the Celtic symbols, which are typically found on Celtic rings, are the knots, spirals and twists. These became linked with love as they are sometimes 1 or 2 lines intertwined and they also have no start and no end. But it is not certain where or when this symbolism became attached to the design.
Often Celtic rings will be given as engagement or rings and these will typically have a regular design eg the twists and knots. Nonetheless there’s also the trinity knot. This is found as a pendent in modern Celtic jewelry designs and is often given to girls. This has a few different meaning; the spiritual meaning is where this represents the Holy Trinity; father, son and Holy Ghost. Nonetheless the symbolism is also linked with the cycle of the moon; waxing, waning and full moon. The final association is to womanhood and represents the stages of womanhood; maiden, mummy and crone.
Whether you are looking for a Claddagh engagement ring, or for other Celtic rings and jewellery, it is undeniably worth checking out the meaning of your present.
