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A six-pointed star formed from two overlapping triangles.
Also known as: Magen David, Shield of David, Jewish star, Six-pointed star
The Star of David is the principal modern symbol of Jewish identity and appears on the flag of Israel. Its use as a specifically Jewish emblem is comparatively recent, becoming widespread from the nineteenth century.
Identifies Judaism and Jewish communities, and appears on synagogues, gravestones and the flag of Israel.
Contexts: Religion
Became widely established as a specifically Jewish emblem comparatively recently, spreading from the nineteenth century; the hexagram itself is far older and appears in many unrelated traditions.
19th century onward as a general Jewish emblem · Contexts: Religion
Was used by Nazi Germany to mark and identify Jews for persecution — a history that remains part of how the symbol is read, and which is entirely distinct from its religious meaning.
Recorded because the history is inseparable from the symbol's reception. The symbol is Jewish; the badge was an instrument of persecution imposed on Jews.
1930s–1945 · Contexts: Religion
Is not the only figure built from interpenetrating triangles, and readers regularly identify it wrongly on that basis. The Sri Yantra, a Hindu tantric diagram, has nine interlocking triangles whose central overlap reads as a hexagram at a glance; counting the triangles distinguishes them at once.
Contexts: Religion
Two overlapping equilateral triangles, one upright and one inverted, forming a six-pointed star.
Both are built from interpenetrating triangles; two against nine.