It seems that everyone likes the star design. To some, it brings to mind the night sky. To others it is a religious symbol. With this article I am going to explore some of the different star tattoo design shapes and their meanings.
Let's look at the shape of the star itself. Almost all star shapes are symmetrical. You can stretch out some of the points but in general the points of the star are all spaced equally around the center of the star. The three main star shapes that will be discussed are the 4 point, 5 point and 6 point star. All can be inked as a tattoo design.
The 4 point star is a simple design. It normally is placed with the points up, down, left and right rather than the X placement. This shape is is mostly used to denote stars in the night sky (think Christmas). It makes a beautiful tattoo design due to it's simplicity. Many times the 4 point tattoo design is inked to create a 3 dimensional look by shading one half of each leg. This gives it depth and beauty. Also, if the lower leg of the star tattoo design is lengthened or stretched, it sometimes will denote a cross or holy symbol.
The 5 point star is probably the most common type of star shape. All five points around the star are equal distance apart from each other. When considering the 5 point star shape as a tattoo design, 2 things should come to mind. One is the way in which it is inked (with or without the intersecting lines), and the other is the orientation of the design (one leg pointing straight up or one leg pointing straight down).
When the star tattoo design is inked with the intersecting lines it is called a pentagram. When the pentagram is surrounded by a circle it is called a pentacle. Pentagrams are a symbol of faith for many Wiccans (no matter what the orientation). At one time Christians used this symbol to represent the 5 wounds of Jesus Christ. Sometimes the five points represent the five elements (Air, Fire, Earth, Water and Spirit).
A pentagram with a single leg pointing up is considered sign of good with the spirit being the top point ruling over the other 4 elements of matter. When 2 points are up it may represent evil or the dark side (the shape of the goat) with the spirit being beneath the 4 elements of matter.
When the five point star is inked without the intersecting lines it can represent stars in the sky, military power or rank, and peace. When drawn this way, orientation is not as important.
The 6 point star is most commonly known as the Star of David and is a religious symbol for the Jewish faith. It sometimes refers to the six days of creation. When inked as this symbol, the intersecting lines of the 2 triangles that make up the star are sometimes entwined. That is, each leg overlaps the next.
Other uses for the six point star design are... Police or sheriff's badges, certain gang symbols and other faiths such as Muslim, Mormon, Zion , Christian, Rastafari and even some eastern religions.
I hope this explains some of the meanings behind stars and their shapes. Any of the above mentioned shapes would make great looking star tattoo designs. I wish you well in your search for the perfect tattoo design.
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