The Stellar Knot
星辰結, 星辰结, 星辰結び, 별매듭
Generalities
The stellar knot is a variation on the The Cloverleaf Knot. Chinese Knotting 3 introduces the stellar knot as the 14th basic knot.
As one of the many variations on the cloverleaf knot, I'm not certain it needs to be it's own family. Admittedly, it has a clear charisma and graphic recognizability going for it as well as being named a basic knot by Ms. Chen. I may at a later date feel that the stellar knot needs to be demoted to cloverleaf knot pull wrap (push overlap?) or something, but at least until I decide on some clear terminology and naming conventions, we'll let the stellar knot have it's moment in the sun. Of course, once it's the root of it's own family tree we might not want to demote it (leave Pluto alone!!) upon later reflection.
Nomenclature
Chen 3: Type 2a Complex Cloverleaf Knot (4), Constellation Knot (5, 6, 9, 10)ABoK: #591 A Pentagon in Two Planes (5+), #2456 (6)
Translation Notes
In Chinese Knotting 3, Ms. Chen introduces us to this celestial variant on the Cloverleaf Family and named it 星辰結 (xīng chén jié, the star knot.
In the English version of Chinese Knotting 3, Ms. Chen translates the name as the Constellation Knot, but since a constellation is a grouping of stars and since the star knot is a well known and altogether different knot, I thought stellar to be a more appropriate name, sadly adding naming variations where none existed before.
In my notes, I have this page as the source for the Japanese translation of the stellar knot (星形結び, ほしがた むす, Hoshi katachi musubi) but a second look reveals that it is talking about a star shaped pan chang knot, not the stellar knots at all. So, was there a valid source and I just confused the source URL (and can't find it now) or am I fabricating sources from a fevered imagination?!? In either case, it sounds plausible, no? So we'll go with 星形結び with a great big asterix next to it for now.
In consultation with a Korean maedeup expert, she decided the direct translation of the Chinese name to Korea would be best, which makes the Korean translation also, star knot: 별매듭 (byeol maedeup).
How To
General Tips
- The good old standbys of pin boards or bobby pins to help maintain order while tying the knot are not nearly so efficacious as a paper template, easily constructed from scrap paper. The joy of paper templates, to me, is that you can flip them over and easily see and access the reverse of the knot you are working on.
- Be careful not to overtighten your knot or you will lose the lovely star effect. Keep the centre flat and prevent the centre structure from bulging by holding the centre pressed between your fingers with your non-dominant hand. This also has the added side benefit of preventing the central hole from collapsing inadvertently.
The 5 pointed stellar knot is clearly the root from which this knot family gets their name. So, we start here and backtrack for smaller stellar knots.
Crossed vesica piscis.
Triquetra.
Similar Knots
- The Cloverleaf Knot
- The Treasure Knot
- The Star Knot