Vesica piscis
The vesica piscis is a type of
This figure appears in the first proposition of Euclid's Elements, where it forms the first step in constructing an equilateral triangle using a compass and straightedge. The triangle has as its vertices the two disk centers and one of the two sharp corners of the vesica piscis.[4]
Mathematical description
Mathematically, the vesica piscis is a special case of a lens, the shape formed by the intersection of two disks.
The mathematical ratio of the height of the vesica piscis to the width across its center is the
Area
The area of the vesica piscis is formed by two equilateral triangles and four equal circular segments. In the drawing, one triangle and one segment appear in blue.
One triangle and one segment form a sector of one sixth of the circle (60°). The area of the sector is then: .
Since the side of the equilateral triangle has length r, its area is .
The area of the segment is the difference between those two areas:
By summing the areas of two triangles and four segments, we obtain the area of the vesica piscis:
Applications
The two circles of the vesica piscis, or three circles forming in pairs three vesicae, are commonly used in Venn diagrams. Arcs of the same three circles can also be used to form the triquetra symbol, and the Reuleaux triangle.[3]
In
The vesica piscis is also used as a proportioning system in architecture, in particular
Several other artworks or designs have also featured this shape:
- The cover of the Chalice Well in Glastonbury (United Kingdom) depicts a stylized version of the vesica piscis design.
- Several mathematical sculptures by Susan Latham use a three-dimensional form obtained from the planar depiction of two circles forming the vesica piscis, deformed into as a curved surface with folds along the inner arcs of the vesica and with the two outer arcs meeting in a single curve. Its shape can be analyzed using the mathematics of developable surfaces.[12]
Symbolism
Various symbolic meanings have been associated with the vesica piscis:
- When arranged so that the lens is horizontal, with its two overlaid circles placed one above the other, it symbolizes the interface between the spiritual and physical worlds, represented by the two circles.
- When arranged so that the lens is placed vertically, and used to depict a halo or aureola, it represents divine glory.[16]
- When arranged so that the lens is placed vertically, it has also been said to be a depiction of the vulva, and therefore symbolic of femininity and fertility.[3][17]
- A diagram of Euclid's use of this diagram to construct an equilateral triangle, appearing with the vertical placement of the lens in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake, has been said to be "emblematic of rational man", but overlaid onto a vaginal triangle again symbolizing femininity.[18]
Gallery
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Coat of arms of Guam
-
The twoisogonic centersof a triangle are the intersections of three vesicae piscis whose paired vertices are the vertices of the triangle
See also
- Flower of Life, a figure based upon this principle
- Villarceau circles, a pair of congruent circles derived from a torus that, however, are not usually centered on each other's perimeter
- Lemon (geometry), a similar three-dimensional shape
References
- .
- ^ Norwood, J. W. (1912), "Fish and water symbols", The Open Court, 1912 (11): 662–672
- ^ S2CID 122824246
- ISBN 0486600904.
- ^ Heath, Thomas Little (1897), The Works of Archimedes, Cambridge University: Cambridge University Press., pp. lxxvii , 50, retrieved 2010-01-30
- ^ Arthur Charles Fox-Davies Catholic Encyclopedia. 1913. .
- ^ Scanned reproduction of the article, with illustrations Archived 2014-02-24 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ J. S. M. Ward, An Interpretation of Our Masonic Symbols, 1924, pp. 34–35.
- ^ Albert G. Mackey, Encyclopaedia of Freemasonry, 1921 ed., vol. 2, p. 827.
- ^ Shawn Eyer, "The Vesica Piscis and Freemasonry". Retrieved on 2009-04-18.
- ^ Cannata, Mark (2007). "Carlo Scarpa and Japan: The influence of Japanese art and architecture in the work of Carlo Scarpa" (PDF). University of Lincoln. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-04-01. Retrieved 2010-02-14.
- ISBN 978-1-938664-27-4
- S2CID 122154094
- ^ ProQuest 305360245
- ISBN 978-3-319-00136-4
- hdl:10393/6133
- JSTOR 3171026