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A circle quartered by a cross — the Earth.
Also known as: Globe symbol, Terra symbol, Quartered circle symbol
The Earth's symbol is a circle divided into four by a cross, generally read as the globe with its meridians. A second form, a cross surmounted by a circle, is also in use and means the same thing.
Denotes the Earth, and is used as a subscript for terrestrial units — Earth masses and Earth radii are written with it in planetary science.
Contexts: History
Is used in some modern astrological practice, though the Earth had no place in the classical seven-planet scheme.
Recorded as what astrological tradition assigns, not as a finding. Symbolwise does not assert that any planet influences anything, and astrology has no empirical standing.
Contexts: History
Is absent from the classical alchemical set, because that system was built on the seven wandering bodies visible from Earth — and the Earth is not one of them.
Contexts: History
Has two forms in current use: a circle quartered by a cross, and a cross with a small circle above it. Both denote the Earth and neither is more correct.
Contexts: History
Has two forms with different pedigrees. The cross-in-circle is the older, a quartered globe; the circle surmounted by a cross is the globus cruciger of European royal regalia, an orb held by a monarch, borrowed into astronomical notation. Both are used today and neither has displaced the other.
Contexts: History
Related forms that are not treated as separate canonical symbols — see our variant rules.
Quartered globe
A circle divided by a cross that reaches the rim — the older astronomical form. Encoded as U+2295 in mathematical use and U+1F728 among alchemical symbols, which is a good illustration of how much a symbol's encoding depends on which discipline asked for it.
Globus cruciger
A circle with a small cross standing on top of it, taken from the orb of European coronation regalia. Encoded as U+2641.
A circle divided into four equal quarters by a vertical and a horizontal line.
Both are a circle divided by two crossing lines; the lamp's cross is diagonal and the Earth's is upright.