Trefoil arch explained

A trefoil arch, or three-foiled cusped arch (occasionally trilobite arch, no connection to an actual trilobite), is an arch incorporating the shape or outline of a trefoil – three overlapping circles.^[1] It has been widely used for its symbolic significance in Christian architecture. Trefoil arches are common in Gothic architecture for portals and decoration. Trefoil or "trilobed" arches are also a characteristic feature of decorated portals in late Fatimid architecture and Mamluk architecture in Egypt, from approximately the 12th to 16th centuries.^{[2] [3]}

See also

• Multifoil arch

Notes and References

1. Book: Hourihane, Colum. The Grove Encyclopedia of Medieval Art and Architecture. Oxford University Press. 2012. 978-0-19-539536-5. 2. en.
2. Book: Graves, Margaret S.. Arts of Allusion: Object, Ornament, and Architecture in Medieval Islam. 2018-07-31. Oxford University Press. 978-0-19-069592-7. en.
3. Book: Behrens-Abouseif, Doris. Cairo of the Mamluks: A History of Architecture and its Culture. The American University in Cairo Press. 2007. 9789774160776.