The Maiden – Mother – Crone is represented by the 3 phases of the moon – waxing, waning and full moon.
The Maiden is the crescent (or the waxing moon) – inexperienced, innocent, virgin. Lithe, flexible, beautiful, desireable.
The Mother is the Full Moon, fertile, giving birth, nourishing, sustaining. Strong, powerful, in the fullness of her life.
The Crone is the waning moon – no longer fertile, she is wise and mysterious, with access to the darkness of the new moon, where death is reborn again.