Glossary
Triskelion
An ancient symbol of three identical arms or spirals turning out from a single point.
What is a triskelion?
A triskelion (Greek for “three-legged”) is an ancient symbol of three identical arms, legs or spirals turning out from a single point. You’ll find it on the flag of the Isle of Man and on old Sicilian coins. The BDSM scene made its own version of it, a triskelion inside a circle, which you’ll recognize on the BDSM emblem.
| Means | three-legged (Greek) |
| Also called | triskele, triple spiral |
| Known from | the flag of the Isle of Man, Sicilian coins |
| Often stands for | movement and trinities (land, sea, sky) |
| In the scene | the basis of the BDSM emblem |
Where the symbol comes from
It’s ancient. According to the encyclopedia, the word comes from the Greek triskelḗs, three-legged, and the symbol turned up on coins of Syracuse around 382 BC, after which it became tied to Sicily and later to the Isle of Man. Celtic Life International describes the triskele as a triple spiral that can stand for things like land, sea and sky and the cycle of life, with a history reaching back to the five-thousand-year-old passage tomb of Newgrange in Ireland.
How the BDSM scene took it up
The scene didn’t pick a three-armed symbol by chance. Wikipedia notes that a widely used sign in the BDSM community is derived from the triskelion shape within a circle. The exact meaning of that version belongs with the BDSM emblem, where the three parts and the holes get their own story.
What a triskelion isn’t
“A triskelion always means BDSM.” No. First and foremost it’s a centuries-old symbol with nothing erotic about it. Only the specific version inside a circle, with the holes in it, points to BDSM. Someone with a Manx flag or a Celtic triskele usually means nothing kinky by it.
What I see myself
A triskelion on a piece of jewelry is sometimes a quiet sign that people in the scene recognize in each other, without an outsider catching on. I like that. In my work as a gigolo I know how much discretion is worth: plenty of women are glad to discover something, but not to have the whole world watching. That kind of discovering, calmly and without anyone needing to know, is exactly what a BDSM date with me is. A symbol that only says what it says to whoever recognizes it fits that need for calm and privacy exactly.
Sources
- Triskelion. Wikipedia. Supplies the Greek origin (triskelḗs, three-legged), the appearance on coins of Syracuse around 382 BC, the link to Sicily and the Isle of Man, and that the BDSM community uses a derivative of the triskelion inside a circle.
- The triskele. Celtic Life International. Supplies that the triskele is a triple spiral that can stand for land, sea and sky and the cycle of life, with a history reaching back to Newgrange.
Related terms
- BDSM emblem. The version of the triskelion the BDSM scene uses as a sign of recognition.
- BDSM. The world that emblem belongs to.
What is a triskelion?
A triskelion is an ancient symbol of three identical arms, legs or spirals turning out from a single point. The word is Greek for three-legged. You’ll know it from the flag of the Isle of Man and from Sicilian coins. The BDSM scene uses its own version of it inside a circle.
Learn more
Curious, but you'd rather keep it discreet?
I'm Victor, a gigolo for women. I know how much calm and privacy are worth. Want to discover something without the world looking on? You can always ask me something, with no obligation at all.