Here’s a quick primer on some of the more popular styles and designs of modern Irish jewelry.

Claddagh ring — The Claddagh design symbolizes loyalty, friendship, and love with its telltale Celtic knot. It is often used as a wedding ring. It features two hands holding a heart. Although Claddagh rings are commonly exchanged in Irish weddings today, this custom is actually relatively recent, according to leading historians.

Celtic Cross — This design — which is essentially a traditional Christian cross “gone Celtic” –dates back at least to the 500s if not earlier. In medieval times, the Celtic Cross served to commemorate public buildings and churches. Today, its design is used often in jewelry as well as in “workaday” items such as tattoos and T-shirts.

Other Celtic knots — Telltale Irish interlacing patterns — which have actually been around since Roman times, according to anthropologists — adorn many modern Irish jewelry pieces, such as necklaces, bands, and pendants. Motifs used in Irish art vary wildly. You can find spirals, woven bands known as plaits, and an endlessly bewildering array of other patterns.

Trinity knot — A simple woven knot that represents the holy trinity of Christianity. It symbolizes faith, love and commitment.

Shamrock — The shamrock is a traditional Irish clover symbol that is said to confer luck, love, and friendship on the wearer. Note that the shamrock design is a three-leaf clover (as opposed to the iconic four-leaf clover so often associated with Irish good luck in popular culture.)

Steven Forsyth – Celtic Rings Ltd

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Historically, Celtic jewelry carries rich traditions of storytelling, romance and devotion. Celtic rings are just part of the countless options available for both men and women, and Celtic engagement rings are particularly loved the world over. As a matter of fact, Celtic rings of all types are often passed down through family generations as priceless heirlooms. Family is a central part of Celtic culture and since Celtic jewelry symbols are all about love, friendship and loyalty, it makes sense that family members would want to pass these pieces on to future generations.

Claddagh rings are excellent pieces to pass on to children and grandchildren because they have several meanings. They can be given as wedding or engagement rings, but they can also convey friendship and familial bond as well. Worn on the right hand with the heart facing outward, a Claddagh ring expresses the wearer’s romantic availability. A ring passed from a mother to a daughter before she is married would typically be worn as such. Worn with the heart turned inward communicates that you are in a relationship but not married. The ring is then worn on the left hand after getting engaged (heart turned outward) and after marriage (heart turned inward).

Celtic rings that feature spirals are also central to the Celtic tradition. After interlace designs, spirals are the most common motif in Celtic rings. They have been used for centuries by many cultures, and were first incorporated into Celtic metal work around 2,000 BC during the Celtic Iron Age. Thousands of years later, Celtic craftsmen adopted these spirals into jewelry design. Popular styles include La Tene and Ultimate La Tene. Spirals are also used to convey nature themes, such as snails, planets, whirlpools and galaxies. If your family is particularly interested in cosmic symbolism, these pieces of Celtic jewelry may be passed on as heirlooms.

Clockwise spirals, also known as sunwise circles, are traditionally used as Gaelic blessings or good-luck symbols. These are also excellent designs to choose when looking for family pieces, since they can carry the “luck of the Irish” with them for family members during momentous occasions such as weddings, funerals, graduations and births.

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There are many symbols associated with Celtic Jewelry, not the least of which is the Triquetra, or Trinity Knot. This symbol is translated from Latin to literally mean “three cornered.” The Triquetra is made of three triangular shapes linked together to form one large triangle shape. It can signify several things, the most popular of which being the Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity Knot can also be used to indicate a generational bond of the past, present and future or of familial generations such as mother, daughter and grandmother.

Truly, this symbol has been used to demarcate anything that has three sacred elements. It can also be used to symbolize a tie to nature (land, sea and air or earth, wind and fire). Modern interpretations of the Trinity Knot have even found it being used by Wiccans and New Agers to represent variant ideas. Wiccans use the Trinity Knot to symbolize their triple goddesses or the interconnectedness of mind, body and soul.

Historically, the Trinity Knot has been found equally used in pagan ritualistic symbology as well as in Celtic Christian books and relics. It can be found on runes in Northern Europe, on early Germanic coins and on ancient Celtic illuminated manuscripts such as the Book of Kells.

In Celtic Jewelry, though, the Trinity Knot is most often used to demarcate religious devotion. Combined with traditional interlace patterns, the Triquetra is perhaps the most common symbol found in Celtic jewelry. Celtic rings and other pieces of Celtic jewelry that bear this symbol are ideal gifts for weddings, graduations and births.

Similar knots used in Celtic jewelry include the Eternity Knot, the Lover’s Knot and Heart knots. The Eternity Knot has a closed path, with no discernable end or beginning. This, like the Trinity Knot, gives credence to the idea of eternal live and love. The Lover’s Knot and Heart knots are similarly designed to create depictions of intertwined affection and allegiance. Commonly found on Celtic rings, these designs can also be used in necklaces, pendants, bracelets and earrings.

Steven Forsyth

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