pentangle

E278680

The pentangle is a five-pointed star emblem in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" that represents Sir Gawain’s chivalric virtues and moral perfection.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
pentangle canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (45)

Predicate Object
instanceOf allegorical device
heraldic emblem
literary motif
symbol
appearsInWork Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
associatedWithCharacter Gawain
surface form: Sir Gawain
associatedWithTheme Christian virtue
chivalry
testing of character
contrastedWith image of the Virgin Mary on the inside of Gawain’s shield
culturalContext late medieval English literature
depictedOn Sir Gawain’s shield
describedBy The Gawain Poet
surface form: Gawain-poet
genreContext Arthurian legend
surface form: Arthurian romance
hasInterpretation idealized image of Gawain’s character at the poem’s beginning
standard against which Gawain’s failures are measured
hasName endless knot
hasNumberOfPoints 5
hasProperty continuous line
unbroken form
hasShape five-pointed star
languageOfOrigin Middle English poem
locatedOn outer surface of Gawain’s shield
medium heraldic device in narrative poetry
partOf Gawain’s knightly identity
relatedTo five fingers
five joys of the Virgin Mary
five knightly virtues
five senses
Chaplet of the Five Wounds
surface form: five wounds of Christ

medieval symbolism of the number five
representsConcept endlessness
integrity
interconnected virtues
wholeness
symbolizes chivalric virtues
courtesy
fidelity
fortitude
moral perfection
piety
truth
timePeriodOfWork late 14th century
usedFor moral characterization of Sir Gawain
structuring allegory in the poem

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Gawain symbol pentangle