The vesica piscis is a sacred geometrical symbol in which the circumference of one circle goes through the centre of another identical circle. The almond-shaped centre of the image is called a mandorla (Latin for almond; "vesica" or "vesica piscis" is sometimes also used to describe only this almond-shaped center.) It translates from Latin literally as "fish bladder," but more likely refers to any bladder that takes the form of a fish when filled. It is the sacred geometrical figure of the last two thousand years.The Vesica Piscis symbol appears frequently in medieval art and architecture although the symbol's roots go back further still and it is not common to Christianity.

When the Vesica Piscis is displayed vertically, the mandorla forms the shape of a fish. The word "fish" translates into Greek as "ichthys", which is an acronym for "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior." Early Christians adopted the fish symbol as their own, and used it to identify themselves to one another and avoid persecution. The use of the mandorla in art and achitecture is as a frame for Jesus and the saints, or as the passage between heaven and earth through which Jesus ascends. The icthys has become a pre-eminent Christian icon.

A medieval hymn calls Jesus "the little fish in the Virgin's fountain." The Christ child is often shown inside a mandorla, superimposed over Mary's womb. Mary herself can be equated with the goddess Aphrodite Marina, who brought forth all the fish in the oceans; Marina's blue robe and pearl necklace, like the Christian Mary's, are classic symbols of the sea. On Cyprus to this day, Mary is worshipped as "Panaghia Aphroditessa." The connections are many: the Vesica Piscis illumines the common heritage of Christianity and the Goddess traditions it absorbed.

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