TRIQUETRA?

[vandergraafk]

The Triquetra is an interlocking symbol with long roots in ancient tradition. It is embossed on the cover of the Warren Book of Shadows. It adorns the neck of their familiar, Kit the cat. It also was a symbol used by the witch killed by Jeremy in the series opener. Does it mean more?

The Triquetra obviously is the symbol of the Warren witches. It probably has coven implications since in Black as Cole, another coven with a different symbol was being wiped out. The problem is that the writers didn't really do much with it except in Power Outage. One reason might be is that Jeremy had been successful in wiping out the entire Triquetra based coven with the exception of the Charmed Ones and Aunt Gail and her biddies. Who knows?

[vandergraafk]

In the Charmed Cafe, Elder posed the "coven" question in a slightly different manner than described here. He wrote:

I'm not sure if this belongs in this section, but could I get a definition of "Coven" that would make sense?

Were the Halliwells part of a coven? I do remember Grams having a bridge club coven, but it's safe to assume that those other players were not from the Halliwell/Warren line.

The Halliwell sisters don't seem to belong to a group of other witches and would much rather do things alone than seek out others.
There was that "Jenna" girl that Cole killed. She was part of a coven, and there was Aviva and of course Alice Hicks.

I'm thinking Charmed was much more a show about family than coven-based witches, right?
Covens were never really brought up that much.

What baffles me is the leprachaun (little green Irish dude).
He says "Is this a coven or a daycare center"
It's neither!

[vandergraafk]

Whitelightertony gave this tentative reply:

Grams only told the girls that her coven was a "bridge club" because she and Patty had erased the girls' memories of being magical to protect them from Nicholas. Some of Penny's friends may have been actual witches, while others (such as Aunt Gail) were maybe just non-magical witch practitioners whom Grams trusted with their secret?


Quote:The Halliwell sisters don't seem to belong to a group of other witches and would much rather do things alone than seek out others.



That's basically true, although technically you could define the Power of Three as a coven.


Quote:What baffles me is the leprachaun (little green Irish dude).
He says "Is this a coven or a daycare center"
It's neither!



I think the leprechaun was just being tongue-in-cheek, and using a clever play on words

[vandergraafk]

vandergraafk sought to provide some clarity in posting this reply:

Well, it seems as if we are equivocating here by NOT defining terms. In Charmed, there are two types of witches. The first type, perhaps best represented by the witches in Witch Trial or the witch in Ms. Hellfire, are non-magical entities who practice a more traditional witchcraft. They lack special powers, but perhaps they are more true to the idea of witchcraft. The second type, best represented by the Charmed Ones, but also illustrated by individual witches such as the witch in Something Wicca and Pre-Witched, have special powers and are magical beings.

Though witches in this second category can possess a range of powers, they may or may not be engaged in traditional Wiccan practices. Certainly, the witch in Something Wicca does, as does the witch in Pre-Witched. Clearly, the Charmed Ones do not. Indeed, the idea of having a coven - or even being associated with a coven - is anathema to the Charmed Ones (Prue in All Hell Breaks Loose).

As a lone practiioner, especially after the death of Patty, Grams was probably not as loathesome towards a coven as the Charmed Ones. As a result, I suspect the bridge club were indeed her coven. And, since Grams was a bit of a snob, I am sure that she would not have allowed non-magical witches to associate with her in a coven. Thus, "Aunt" Gail ought to have special powers. However, given Grams's insistence on being "prima unter pares", clearly the members of her coven were subordinate to Grams. Their powers were lesser; their roles were lesser. Still, together these lesser witches were able to summon the demon.