Quatrefoils in Latter-day Saint Temples

Quatrefoils in the St George Utah Temple

Today I'd like to write about quatrefoils in Latter-day Saint Temples. A quatrefoil is a symbol made from 4 semicircles which forms a clover shape. The first use of these symbols in a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is in the St George Utah Temple, pictured above. These alternate with stars along the top of the wall in various rooms. The columns are also shaped as quatrefoils if you were to cut one open and look down on it. The symbol is usually associated with Christianity where it has adorned many cathedrals such as Notre Dame in Paris, but it exists in other cultures as well.

Barbed quatrefoils in San Antonio Temple (left)
 and Concepcion Chile Temple (right)

Sometimes the semicircles are attached to a square which makes a barbed quatrefoil which is sort of like a heraldic rose with thorns.  As far as I can tell, the first Latter-day Saint temple featuring barbed quatrefoils is the San Antonio Texas Temple where it is used as a ceiling molding, pictured above. 

Quatrefoils can be symbolic. I don't think any temple architects have intended the following symbolism, but I find the following traditional symbolism interesting.

1. In Christianity, the four leaves of the quatrefoil have been associated with the writers of the four gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In a temple setting I suppose the symbol could be interpreted as a reminder of the gospel. Since quatrefoils are often used as windows, it can also symbolize the light that the gospel of Jesus Christ brings into your life.

2. According to Wikipedia "In ancient Mesoamerica, the quatrefoil is frequently used in Olmec and Mayan monuments depicting the opening of the cosmic central axis at the crossroads of the four cardinal directions, representing the passageway between the celestial and the underworld" This seems fitting for a temple that acts as a tie between this world, the celestial kingdom, and the dead (underworld). Both the living and the dead are connected with heaven through the temple. 

3. The barbed quatrefoil can be seen as a rose with thorns, a symbol of opposition, blessings amidst trials, beauty, love, the crown of thorns Jesus wore, etc.

4. A barbed quatrefoil is also a square with 4 semi circles attached. A simple quatrefoil is made with a semi circle on each side of a square causing the square to disappear. Either way, these are essentially fancy versions of circles and squares combined which I have written about previously. The circle is a traditional symbol of heaven while the square is a symbol of the earth. So the quatrefoil can be read to mean heaven and earth are combined, or heaven encompassing the earthly, or of union. Each interpretation is an appropriate temple symbol.

5. The four sides of a normal quatrefoil or the four barbs of a barbed quatrefoil can be interpreted as the four quarters of the earth (I read online that it is sometimes used this way in Native American symbolism), so the symbols can be read as a symbol of the gathering of Israel from the four quarters of the Earth.

6. Wikipedia mentioned that there are some uses of the quatrefoil in ancient Mesoamerica associated with water (rain, etc.) This symbol could be taken as a symbol of blessings raining down, baptism, washing, etc. I find this interpretation the most far fetched, but it can work in a temple setting.

While I don't think the temple architects have planned these quatrefoil symbols in temples with the above symbolic interpretations in mind, I do think these can inspire us when we see them in the temple. We can read the symbol as a reminder that through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, temples act as a crossroads providing a connection for us with heaven and a connection for the dead to receive the ordinances for them to connect with heaven. The temples aid in the gathering on both sides of the veil. While participating in the temple, heaven an earth are connected and we can be changed from natural, earthly people into righteous, heavenly people. The temple also teaches us about opposition and union and it unlocks blessings that can shower down from heaven. Whether the symbol is intended to represent these teachings, It is great if it does.

Barbed quatrefoil symbols in the Tijuana Mexico Temple and site

The Tijuana Mexico Temple makes abundant use of the barbed quatrefoil symbol as shown above. It is found in windows, ceiling ornaments, site fountains, landscaping, tower grille work, carpets, ancillary building parapets, etc. I think it is beautifully done and architecturally ties the temple together. If these can remind us of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the work for the living and the dead connecting us to heaven, and other temple themes, then that is wonderful.

Temple renderings showing quatrefoils. Left to right: Puebla Mexico Temple,
San Pedro Sula Honduras Temple, Salta Argentina Temple, and McAllen Texas Temple.

I've noticed that several new temple renderings feature quatrefoils and barbed quatrefoils in their renderings (see above). I think this is part of the effort to make temples look like fine religious architecture in an area. In these cases, it is a Spanish mission style that fits Mexico, Honduras, Argentina, and Texas where these temples are planned. I don't think the symbols were chosen with the symbolism I've discussed in mind, but I think it strengthens the temple themes in the architecture, so I love that the symbols are being used. Plus I love how the symbol looks even if it isn't meant to symbolize anything.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about this symbol in temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

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Quatrefoils in the Provo City Center Temple (left two) and Taylorsville Utah Temple (right two)

Since I wrote this post someone commented that the Provo City Center Temple has quatrefoils. I went and looked and sure enough, they are on the gables at the ridge of the roof and in the ceiling rooms (second picture). I looked and also found that the Taylorsville Utah Temple rendering shows multiple quatrefoils on the exterior rendering as shown in the two pictures on the right.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' Temple Symbols - A Circle in a Square

Circle in Square, Las Vegas Nevada Temple

One common symbol found in temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is that of a circle inscribed in a square.  This is a very simple symbol with a neat meaning.

The circle in the square represent heaven and earth coming together (a great temple symbol).  The heavens are often described as a bowl and often symbolized by a circle.  In paintings, God is often depicted as laying out the heavens with a compass and the earth with a square.  The square is made with a square and represents the earth which is often described as having four corners.  The temple is a place that represents the union of heaven and earth, and where heavenly beings (Angels & Jesus Christ) literally come. 


The circle in the square can remind us of our temple covenants.  I don't want to elaborate on this, but those who have been endowed hopefully have picked up on or will pick up on how a circle and a square represent other symbols that represent other things.

The original Nauvoo Temple had a flying angel weather vane with a symbol above related to the circle in the square.  Here is an excerpt explaining the symbol.

Above the angel was the symbol of the square and compass, and surmounting that was a stylized flame of fire. . . . There exists no account for reason of the placement of the square and compass on the weather vane. One scholar has suggested that, since the compass, which is used to draw circles, points towards the bowl of the sky, and that the square, which is used to draw squares, points towards the earth, that the combination of the two symbols represent the powers of God in creating the bowl of the starry heavens and the four corners of the earth (Brown and Smith, Symbols in Stone, p. 105). Since the symbol is associated with "the angel flying through the midst of heaven" (D&C 133:36), it may suggest that the gospel will be "declared by holy angels" (Moses 5:58) from above to the four corners of the earth, even "unto every nation, and kindred, tongue and people" (D&C 133:37). (source site)

The Salt Lake Temple used the circle in square symbol (and didn't just hint at it).  The symbol can be seen in two places.  The first is here and is actually the earth stones (they just didn't receive the details of continents when the temple materials were changed to granite.  In this case, the symbol may be unintentionally a circle in a square.  The other location is high on the temple, near the top.  In this photo the circle in the square symbol is repeated above the inscription stone and below the cloud stones (which originally were planned with trumpets and would have been trumpet stones, which is where I got the name for this blog).  I've heard people claim that this symbol is the Saturn stone.  Originally the temple was planned to include stones sculpted like the planet Saturn; however, John Taylor had them removed from the temple design at the same time he instructed the architects to stop doing everything the way the Masons did as this was not a Masonic temple.  The circle in the square symbol is definitely NOT the planned Saturn stone symbol.  If you look in the book The Salt Lake Temple: A Monument to a People 1893-1993 you can see the original elevations of the temple and they include both the Saturn stones AND the current tower circle in square symbols on the same drawing.  These two symbols are distinctly different symbols.  I hope I've cleared that up, because a lot of people claim otherwise (online and elsewhere) and it is flat out wrong.  The Salt Lake Temple would also have originally had the compass and square symbols next to the earth stones, but later designs eliminated the symbols.

Many other temples include the circle in a square symbol, so many that I'm not even going to attempt to list them.  You'll find them in stone, on doors, in glass, on fences, cast into the concrete for sidewalks, and many other places.  Here are some examples - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. The original Ogden Utah Temple and the current Provo Utah Temple contain this symbol when viewed from the top.  The upper portion of each temple was rounded and is where the endowment and sealings are performed.  The base of the temples is square (or nearly so).

I like the circle in square symbol, its simplicity, and its beautiful symbolism of heaven and earth united.  Please comment and let us know what you think about this symbol or other places it has been used.

If you want to read more, here is an article by Hugh Nibley on the subject from BYU's website.