The Trinacria - History and Mythology

by Ninni Radicini


The symbol of Trinacria is well-known today because present in the flag of Sicily and that of the Isle of Man. His history is articulated and still wrapped in the mystery since connects with mythology. The Trinacria, symbol of Sicily, is composed of the head of Gorgon, whose hair is interwoven snakes with wheat ears, from which of three folded legs up to the knee irradiate. The Gorgon is a mythological personality. For Hesiod (VIII - VII sec. b.C.), Greek poet, was everybody of three daughters of Forco and Ceto, two divinities of the sea: Medusa (the Gorgon par excellence), Steno ("the strong"), Euriale ("the spacious"). They had tusks of wild boar, hands made of bronze, gold wings, snakes on the head and in the waist. Were living at Esperidi (daughters of Atlas, in the island of the Blissfuls, the most western part of the world). They could petrify the men with a glance. Wheat ears are territory fertility symbol.

The three legs represent the three promontories of Sicily: Cape Peloro (or Tip of the Lighthouse, Messina: North-east), Cape Passero (Siracusa: South), Cape Lilibeo (or Cape Boeo, Marsala: West). This arrangement finds again in the Greek term "triskeles" and connects with the geographic meaning: treis (three) and akra (promontories): from which also in latin triquetra (to three tops). The arrangement of the three legs, making think of a rotation, took the researchers to go back to the religious symbology oriental, especially that of Baal, the god of the time. To Vaga (Tunisia), in the dedicated monument, over the bull there is a Trinacria. Or to that of the moon, where the three legs are replaced by sickles.

In the Near East, between VI and IV b.C, the Trinacria was carved in the coins of several towns, in ancient areas, which: Aspendo (in Panfilia, on the eastern Mediterranean sea), Berrito and Thebes (in Troade, territory about at the town in Troia, between the Scamandro and the Ellesponto), Olba (in Cilicia (between Armenia and Syria), and in some town of Lycia (south-west). Also in the absence of references to the geographic conformation, the symbol was also used at Crete, Macedonia, and in the northern center Spain. Homer, in the Odyssey, alluding to the island form, uses the Thrinakie term, which comes from thrinax ("three tips"). The theses on the sources of the Trinacria find a reference substantial in the ancient history of Greece. The Spartan fighters were carving in their shields a folded white leg up to the knee, strength symbol. This image meets again in the paintings on the ancient vases and is also in a monograph of 1863 on the subject, written by the German philosopher K.W. Goettling.

Normans, arrived to Sicily in 1072, "exported" the Trinacria in the Isle of Man, that chose her as a symbol in replacement of that precedent, a vessel, of scandinavian origin. An example of the symbolic importance of the Trinacria, in the history of Sicily, has had on August 30th of 1302 with the constitution of the Island in Kingdom of Trinacria, following the peace of Caltabellotta, to the conclusion of the "Vespro war", which saw the dispute between the Angevin and Sicilians (ally with the Aragoneses). The kingdom sovereignty was, under the point of formal view, assigned to Federico II of Aragona (1227-1337); it was actually independent of the rest of the Aragonese domains in the southern Italy. The symbol of Trinacria is also present in the coats of arms of several noble dynasties: the Stuart of Albany in England (maybe for their domain on the islands of the sea of Ireland, between which the Isle of Man), the Rabensteiner in France, the Schanke in Denmark, the Drocomir in Poland, and in that of Gioacchino Murat, king of the Two Sicilies at the beginning of the 1800.

The Trinacria is to the center in the flag of the Sicily. The flag is red and yellow, in diagonal sense, and has been approved in January 2000. The law has established that the sicilian flag must be exposed to the outside of: sicilian parliament (sicilian regional assembly); regional committee; provincial and communal councils; seats of regional provinces presidents and mayors; schools; buildings in which are constituted electoral seats in the elections for the sicilian parliament.

Flag of Sicily

Flag of Isle of Man

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The contemporary Greece (1974-2006) by Rudy Caparrini, Vincenzo Greco, Ninni Radicini preface by Antonio Ferrari, "Corriere della Sera" journalist, corresponding from Athens publishing house: Polistampa, 2007 * The book is in italian version only

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