IsleVue

Articles by John Iacovelli

Author: John Iacovelli

Tarot
John Iacovelli ,

Two Questions On the Hermit

Two questions about the anonymous but enlightened hermit: (1) who is he and (2) why the six pointed star? Less mysterious but also important is the question of why Waite included the very, very negative secondary set of upright divinatory meanings in the Pictorial Key to the Tarot? As we examine the questions, we’ll find links to Father Time, the Christian God the Father, and the head of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. We’ll also stumble across that famous number, 666. In the end, the identity of the Hermit is in the eye of the beholder, since he seems to hold more than one identity. But that may be appropriate for a major arcanum associated not just with prudence, but also with dissimulation and treason.

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The Star Feature Image
Tarot
John Iacovelli , , , , , ,

The Star, Goddess at First Light

You’ve got to hand it to Pamela Colman Smith on this one. She took one of the least attractive cards in the Tarot de Marseilles deck, and without substituting any major new elements, turned it into one of the prettiest cards in the RWS deck. But new or old look, The Star raises many questions. Who is she? What Star in particular? Why eight points on the star? Why eight stars? Its order in the majors is important, for one. It is first light after the darkness of The Tower. This is why it’s dawn. And the Goddess appears to be the female goddess from the dawn of civilization herself: Ishtar. There are a number of reasons for the eight stars of eight points each, some of which Waite rolled into his mystical Christian skewing of the tarot. Waite was as heavy-handed on this one as Colman Smith’s hand was deft. The Star is one of those cards where stories and myths abound; and it is through those stories and myths that we can understand it better.

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Probabilities Feature Image
Tarot
John Iacovelli

Distribution Probability Counts by Spread Sizes

Given a fair-sized spread—say ten cards—we sometimes might say to ourselves, “hmmm… that’s a lot of swords there…” or “gee, not a single court card…” Those insights can and do affect the “bottom line” of a reading. Knowing, for example, that in the spread you just laid out for your client, Mars is very heavily represented can provide a rather important insight. Though deck designers often try to give us clues, it might be easy to miss something like that. Some decks even print the zodiac, planetary and/or qabalistic symbols on each card, specifically for this reason. This post isn’t going to give you any startling revelations. It’s just an odd, longish table I drew up to calculate, using standard deviation functions, the minimum-maximum numbers of the types of cards we should expect, in layouts between 1 and 16 cards in size. You’ll find breakouts for the classical elements, the Zodiac signs, the planets, the major and minors, the court cards, and, last but not least, reversals. If you find it helpful, great. If not, no worries… we’ll get back to those deep analysis type posts soon enough; this is just my way of takin’ a break. 😉

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The Empress Aphrodite Pandemos Feature Image
Tarot
John Iacovelli ,

The Empress of Light, Aphrodite Pandemos

Of the first seven major arcana, two represent the dual aspects of Venus; and one other represents the eternal question of what to do about her? Waite described the Empress as “the woman clothed with the sun, as Gloria Mundi and the veil of the Sanctum Sanctorum.” The High Priestess is pictured in front of the Sanctum Sanctorum, and is the representative of the mysteries in the darkness behind it. So to visit the realm of the High Priestess, Waite seems to say, you go through the Empress. This opposition of light and dark qualities directly relates to the neoplatonic view of the two natures of Venus. There is, according to Wikipedia, an “earthly Aphrodite Pandemos, representing carnal love and beauty, and the heavenly Aphrodite Urania representing a higher and more spiritual love.” Waite’s Empress is very Roman, as we shall see; but then, what else would we expect from a man writing at the height of the British Empire? The RWS Empress is inextricably tied to the material world.

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Devil Zipper Collage
Tarot
John Iacovelli , ,

The Devil Had a Makeover

Eliphas Lévi’s writings in 19th century France markedly changed the meaning of The Devil in Tarot. Lévi identified this major arcanum with Baphomet, the Sabbatic Goat-demon. Prior to Lévi, the Devil had hooves, but also had a human-like head. The now goat-headed demon was seen as the animalistic/bestial side of us. He could now be defeated by rationality. The new Devil was internalized: the sinner driving themself to sin out of their own stupidity or beastliness. Lévi was a particularly strong influence on A.E. Waite. In RWS and derivative decks, the Devil as Baphomet forms the basis of our view of this card as more about sexuality and biologically based urges (such as addiction) than about pure evil.Yet when we read this card as a type of “personal slavery” today, we must ask: is evil only a personal problem? The world is more evil today. If we recognize that in our society it is usually the case that more evil is done to common people than any amount that they do to others, then perhaps a better read, one that may help more querents in a better manner may be something along the lines of: “evil has been done to you. Evil has been done to many others and you are not alone. You can either give in or find help in healing yourself. And perhaps one day, you and I and the others will fight the Devil, together.”

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Helle and Phrixus on Chrysomallus
Tarotgrams
John Iacovelli

Tarotgram – Chrysomallus/Liebig Trading Card

The illustration was taken from a trading card issued by the Liebig Extract of Meat Company. The cards were published beginning in the 19th century, though this one may be from the early twentieth century. It depicts the source story of Aries the ram. It represents Chrysomallus, the flying ram that rescued two children and provided the Golden Fleece. Aries can therefore embody protection, rescue and wealth. The Three of Wands, we’ve noted, is influenced by Aries. Its focus on commerce and trade (sea trade in the RWS illustration) may invoke the story of Jason and the Golden Fleece, which also touches upon Mars (the fleece was kept in a grove sacred to him) the Sun (Chrysomallus was descended from the Sun God), and Binah (the “mother” symbol of the qabala—Hera figures prominently in the Golden Fleece story). All of which are influences upon the Three of Wands.

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The Wheel of Fortune Visits the NYPL
Tarot
John Iacovelli

Copyright and Tarot Books

I recently ran across an online note concerning the copyright status of works published in the USA between 1923 and 1964 (any work published before then is public domain; anything since copyright protected, assuming the original work carried a copyright notice). During that period it was the responsibility of the publisher or author to re-apply for extended copyright after the initial period. Most did not, and the article pointed to Stanford University’s search page which lists copyright renewals. At the same time I ran across an article in a tarot group regarding reproduction of tarot card designs. From there I went on to track down the status of a few key decks, and generally look for copyright extensions for tarot works during that period. It was a pleasant way to kill an hour, and the post contains a number of links you may find of interest…

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