Three rings (planar circles) are "linked" together, but you'll notice that none is directly linked with another.

• The red ring is "behind" the yellow.
• The yellow ring is "behind" the blue.
• The blue ring is "behind" the red.

Still, while none is intertwined with another, it is impossible to pull them apart.
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Is this a paradox?

Can this really be built?

These rings are called "Borromean Rings" after the name of a family; musicians may recognize the RICORDI (a music publisher) logo.

For more information, see the Borromean Rings page, and regarding the impossibility of the figure, particularly see "Borromean Rings in Mathematics".

Edited on May 29, 2004, 6:54 pm

Edited on May 4, 2006, 12:49 pm

Posted by Federico Kereki on 2004-05-29 18:53:20