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Two hands holding a crowned heart, an Irish emblem of love and loyalty.
Also known as: Claddagh ring, Irish friendship ring, Hands heart and crown
The Claddagh is a pair of hands holding a heart with a crown above it, and each element carries a stated reading: the hands friendship, the heart love, the crown loyalty. It takes its name from a village near Galway and belongs to the wider European family of clasped-hand rings. The much-repeated rules about which hand it is worn on and which way the heart points are nineteenth-century folklore rather than an old tradition, and the catalogue records them as convention rather than as rule.
Carries a stated reading for each of its three elements: the hands for friendship, the heart for love and the crown for loyalty — a gloss repeated consistently enough to be part of the symbol rather than an interpretation of it.
Is surrounded by wearing conventions — which hand, which way the heart points — that are nineteenth-century folklore rather than an ancient code, and are followed inconsistently even in Ireland.
The wearing rules are widely repeated and comparatively recent. This record states them as a convention rather than endorsing any version as correct.
Two hands reaching in from either side to hold a heart between them, with a small crown resting on the top of the heart.
The Claddagh is a member of the fede family.