Pentagram
A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha or pentangle or a star pentagon) is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes.
The word pentagram comes from the Greek word πεντάγραμμον (pentagrammon), from πέντε (pente), "five" + γραμμή (grammē), "line". The word "pentacle" is sometimes used synonymously with "pentagram" The word pentalpha is a learned modern (17th-century) revival of a post-classical Greek name of the shape.
Geometry
The pentagram is the simplest regular star polygon. The pentagram contains ten points (the five points of the star, and the five vertices of the inner pentagon) and fifteen line segments. It is represented by the Schläfli symbol {5/2}. Like a regular pentagon, and a regular pentagon with a pentagram constructed inside it, the regular pentagram has as its symmetry group the dihedral group of order 10.
Construction
The pentagram can be constructed by connecting alternate vertices of a pentagon; see details of the construction. It can also be constructed as a stellation of a pentagon, by extending the edges of a pentagon until the lines intersect.
Pentagram (band)
Pentagram is an American heavy metal band from Alexandria, Virginia, most famous as one of the pioneers of heavy metal, and the subgenre of doom metal in particular. The band was prolific in the underground scene of the 1970s, producing many demos and rehearsal tapes, but did not release a full-length album until reforming in the early 1980s with an almost completely new lineup. Throughout the band's history the only constant member has been vocalist Bobby Liebling. The revolving lineup of Pentagram has featured many well respected musicians in the local doom metal scene, with members spending time in other acts such as Raven, The Obsessed, Place of Skulls, Internal Void, Spirit Caravan, among many others.
The 1970s
In 1971, Liebling and Geof O’Keefe decided to leave their previous bands (Shades of Darkness and Space Meat, respectively) to form a new band that reflected their interest in emerging metal acts such as UFO, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep and Sir Lord Baltimore. At Liebling’s suggestion, the group was named Pentagram, a sinister name that reflected the gloomy subject matter of their material. Although the band would change its name several times during 1971 and 1972 (Virgin Death, Macabre, and Wicked Angel were all considered during this period), they would eventually (and permanently) return to Pentagram. Contrary to popular belief, they were never called Stonebunny; this was the name given to Space Meat when Bobby Liebling joined them briefly.
Pentagram (design studio)
Pentagram is a design studio that was founded in 1972 by Alan Fletcher, Theo Crosby, Colin Forbes, Kenneth Grange, and Mervyn Kurlansky in Needham Road, West London, UK. They now have offices in London, New York, San Francisco, Austin and Berlin.
History
Pentagram was founded on the premise of collaborative interdisciplinary designers working together in an independently owned firm of equals. Theo Crosby claimed the structure was suggested to him by his experience of working on the seminal late-1950s exhibition This is Tomorrow: "it was my first experience at a loose, horizontal organisation of equals. We have brought it ... to a kind of practical and efficient reality at Pentagram". The firm currently comprises 19 partner-designers in 5 cities, each managing a team of designers and sharing in common overhead and staff resources. The partners in each office share incomes equally and all the partners own an equal portion of the total firm. This equality, along with the tradition of periodically inviting new members to join, renews the firm while giving even the newest members an equal footing with the partners of long standing. This 'flat' organization (there are no executive officers, CEO, CFO or board, other than the entire group) along with the self-capitalized finances of the business, allows equal participation and control of the group's destiny by the members.
