A New Interpretation of the Symbolism of the Visconti/Sforza
Deck
Trevor Hunter
Introduction
Any analysis of this deck invariably involves two streams
of investigation i.e. the philosophy/theology and the geometry.
The intent if this article is to present the philosophy/theology
aspect, although by necessity, there will be the odd reference
to the geometry.
Even though I have carried out an analysis of all the
major arcana, for the purposes of this article I have used
a representative sample only.
Due to printing limitations, it would be helpful for the
reader to have a copy of this deck at hand to refer to
whilst reading this article.
I originally bought a (Pierpont-Morgan) Visconti-Sforza
deck (2002 edition) for my wife. We were drawn to the deck
by the artwork and gilding. The more I handled the major
arcana cards, the more I was being drawn into a world of
long ago and I just had to find out about the history of
this deck.
It was then I noticed the heraldic anomalies and the geometry
of certain cards. As a picture was building in my mind
and on my drawing board, I could relate aspects of Cathar
theology to certain cards. By this time I was hooked to
say the least.
The basic outline of the history of these cards is that
they were made for Francesco Sforza and Bianca Maria Visconti
(married 1441). The heraldry depicted on the cards dates
them at no earlier than when Francesco Sforza assumed the
title of Duke of Milan in 1450. There are only fourteen
of the original cards in existence, a further six cards
(Sun, Moon, Star, Temperance, World and Strength) are attributed
to a different artist and have been dated to approximately
1470. The remaining two cards (the Devil and Tower) have
been added at a later date again to make up the major arcana
as we know it today.
Antonio Bembo is generally attributed as the original
artist. There is speculation as to the second artist but
the one that fits the profile that was starting to appear
in tandem with the emerging geometry was Piero della Francesca,
an artist and mathematician who wrote a number of papers
on geometry.
Overview
The more I handled these cards, the more I felt there
was a message in them, trying to reach out across the years.
I have refrained from using the name Tarot because the
original deck did not conform to the standard number of
cards, they were not numbered and a lot of the symbolism
is not carried through to later tarot decks. Even though
the cards share the names of traditional tarot cards, in
more cases than not the symbolism which defines the character/virtue
of the card is different.
As I delved into the history of this deck I found myself
being drawn down into a Cathar Gnostic world. One world
where good and evil co-exist in a balance in one God, a
world of complimentary opposites, a world where the void
is bridged by the Gnosis (knowledge) or in mainstream Christianity,
the Holy Spirit.
This notion of Gnosticism will be dealt with later and
will become apparent when I describe the individual cards.
As an interim example, look at the Emperor and Empress
cards laid side by side, the Emperor to the left of the
Empress (Fig 1).
Figure 1 - Emperor and Empress
Emperor:
|
Empress:
|
The (single headed) eagle
on the Emperor’s headdress is shown to the
heraldic sinister (left).
|
The (single headed) eagle
on the Empress’s (tilting) shield is shown
to the dexter (right, correct stance), but a female
was not (particularly at this point in time and society)
considered a combatant.
|
The Emperor’s robes
display a pattern of three interlaced rings, laurel
leaves (and flowers), a crown and palm fronds (crown
partially obscured).
|
The Empress’s robes
display a pattern of three interlaced rings, laurel
leaves (and flowers), a crown and palm fronds.
|
The only signs of Office
on the Emperor are the (reversed) eagle, a small
(non regal) baton and the small orb surmounted by
a modified cross pattee.
|
Is the Empress holding
the shield of her consort or of her Office?
|
The Emperor is old, wise,
knowing.
|
The Empress is young,
regal, enigmatic.
|
The Emperor is seated
outdoors on his throne and dais (an indoor accruement?)
|
The Empress is evidently
holding court indoors but holding a shield reserved
for outdoors activities.
|
Orb and baton (sceptre)
are a sign of royal rank.
|
|
The robes and headdress
are of nobility but not necessarily royalty.
|
The Empress is wearing
a crown of royal rank.
|
The Empress and Emperor are complimentary opposites.
At the point in history when these cards were produced,
the Cathars were virtually wiped out because the established
church condemned them as heretics and launched a crusade
to rid the world of them. A more detailed examination of
this campaign and its repercussions inevitably draw in
the Knights Templar, secret societies, secret treasure,
and conspiracy theories abound. There are historical links
with both the Visconti and Sforza families with Papacy
and the Cathars that pre-date this deck.
There have been some studies into the Cathar/Gnostic links
to this deck in the past and the results have either been
in the negative or inconclusive. A lot of this discussion
has centred on the Papess card. One of the points of contention
between the Gnostics and the Roman Catholic Church was
the Gnostic rule of gender equality and hence the acceptance
of a female pope.
My approach to the analysis is to view the cards as carrying
a message to the initiated and have a few key pointers
to make the initiated aware that there is a hidden message
and to entice one to look further. Due to religious persecution
at the time, it would be unreasonable to expect the artwork
to exhibit overtly Gnostic elements. The execution and
interpretations of the various elements must be viewed
from a 15th century Gnostic viewpoint and not with (enlightened)
20/21st century hindsight.
In “Catharism & Tarot” by Robert V.
O’Neill, the research criteria was looking
for overt signs of Catharism (Gnosticism) in the artwork,
but failed to take into account the political and religious
climate of the time, which would have been tantamount
to suicide on behalf of the card’s (Gnostic) creators
during the years of repression (the Inquisition).
The Cathars
History/Theology
Gnostic: An early religious sect whose
doctrines were based partly on Christianity and partly
on Greek and Oriental philosophy which believed that salvation
was achieved through the acquiring of sacred knowledge
(Gnosis). A key element of this acquisition of knowledge
was through self attainment, that is ones individual effort
with the help of others was the path to salvation. Salvation
could not be obtained through another person or entity
i.e. a priest/the church.
Heresy: A fundamental error in doctrine.
The Cathars were part of a line of heretical
Gnostic sects that traced their history back to the Essene
community on the shores of the Dead Sea. They were primarily
located in the south of France in a region known as the
Occitan. Most of the Cathar activity appears to be located
in the sub-region known as Languedoc and was active from
the 12th Century to the early 14th Century (the last Cathar
was burnt at the stake in 1321). The Inquisition forced
a diaspora of the Cathar community and it spread to Catalonia
in Spain and to the city states in Lombardy (Itally) and
Siciliy where the local rulers gave them protection from
the inquisition under a policy of religious tolerance.
The Essene Community was in existence
some 200 years before the time of Jesus to approximately
350 CE and the theory that Jesus was influenced by them
has been put forward by a number of researchers. It is
from this community that the Dead Sea scrolls and Nag Hammadi
codexes are said to originate.
Gnosticism is a theology based on the
quest for knowledge and the rejection of the material world
as the means of salvation. Due to the questioning/knowledge
base of Gnostic theology, it was a fluid religion, that
is, it was in a continual state of flux, a state of change
as old theories were built upon and new theories developed.
The basic precepts for Gnosticism are:
- That the universe is a duality of opposites, light
and dark, good and evil, male/female, etc.
- The rejection of the Trinity.
- Gender equality.
- That when Satan and his angels were cast from Heaven,
they dwelt on earth and inhabited human bodies.
- The rejection of the established (Roman Catholic) church.
- The rejection of idols and instruments of worship.
- The rejection of transubstantiation (the idea that
the bread and wine of the eucharist turns into the actual
body and blood of Christ in the hands of the priest).
- The only way absolution from sin can be obtained is
through the gaining of knowledge and the direct communion
with God.
- All property is for the shared good of the community.
- The rejection of the amassing individual material wealth.
- The rejection of physical violence towards humans or
animals.
Cathar theology was a development on the (Gnostic) theology
of the Bogomils (of Bulgaria) and the earlier Manicheans.
The Cathar Problem
The last vestiges of Catharism that remain with us today
are the symbol of the dove and the Pater Noster (Lords
Prayer) ending of “For Thine is the Kingdom, the
Power and the Glory, for ever and ever”. This ending
does not appear in the Latin Vulgate version of the Bible
as used by the Roman Catholic Church, but does appear in
the Greek and Slavonic translations of the Gospel of St.
Matthew as used by the Bogomils.
The Cathars had no churches or hierarchy of clergy. There
were only Credens (believers) and Perfects (Priests). They
preached where the people would gather and had no fixed
place of worship. It seems that the established churches
main problem was not so much with the Cathar theology as
with its attack on the institution of the church and the
assumptions of the Papal throne.
The most complete records we have today of the Cathars
are those of their most zealous opponents, the Inquisition.
In an effort to establish its case against the Cathars,
the inquisition was meticulous in its investigation, inquiries
and records of proceedings.
In their rejection of the material world, the Cathars
would not eat meat or any thing that was the result of
procreation. Milk, meat and eggs were rejected and their
diet was vegetarian, supplemented with fish.
In 1209 Pope Innocent III launched the Albigensian Crusade
to eradicate the Cathars. This failed to solve the problem
due to geography and the lack of support of the local nobility.
Locally the Cathars were known as “the good people” who
caused no trouble. In 1231, with the Cathars diminished
in number but still proclaiming their faith. Pope Gregory
IX established the Papal Inquisition to eradicate the Cathars
once and for all. It took another ninety years before the
last Cathar was burnt at the stake.
It makes no sense to look at the situation of the Cathars
versus the Pope in isolation. Catharism was a complex religion
that held firm beliefs for which its adherents were ready
to die for. The Roman Catholic Church was trying to maintain
and expand its political influence as the pre-eminent political/religious
organisation in Europe and afield. It appears that the
church was more attuned to the acquisition of power and
wealth than it was for the souls of the populace. Local
aristocracy was trying to expand and consolidate its grip
on lands which would later become the countries of Europe
as we now know them.
The Visconti/Sforza Deck and the Cathar Link
When I first started questioning the validity of Cather/Gnostic
undertones within the deck I found little information of
direct use. The path always came back to Robert O’Neill’s “Tarot
Symbolism” and the follow-on updates on the internet.
All of the arguments were saying the connection was non-existent
and yet I still had a nagging feeling that something was
missing.
I took a step back and looked at my initial impressions.
These were compared with the criteria and analysis that
O’Neill used in his study. It was then I realised
that we had different research criteria.
O’Neill was looking for overt signs of Catharism
in each card in 15th century decks.
I was looking for a pattern in the cards of a specific
deck which told a story of the Cathar journey.
“Tarot Symbolism” has been a wonderful source
of information and inspiration for me, but I had to keep
it in perspective and not be drawn down O’Neill’s
path.
My feeling was that there would be a geometric pattern
to the placement of the cards whereby individual characters
and events would portray the Cathar story.
The first step was to look at each card, examine the heraldry,
common symbols, deviations from social norms of the day,
compare the level of artistic representation for the general
period and any other points that caught my eye as an anomaly.
It was only through questioning that the answers started
to appear, not unlike Cathar philosophy.
One must remember that Catharism had been dead (suppressed)
for over one hundred years when this deck was produced.
The Office of the Inquisition had gained enormous power
for extracting “confessions” and enforcing
official Church dogma far beyond its original charter of
eliminating the Cathari. Therefore the need to conserve
Cathari knowledge through time would have to be hidden
within a framework of respectability so as not to draw
unwanted attention by the authorities. It must be remembered
that by this time, a person could be guilty of heresy purely
by associating with a proclaimed heretic.
The Cards
In the following analysis, I have limited the discussion
to a representative selection of the major arcana. This
was done in two stages, the first concerned the original
fourteen cards only and the second with the additional
six cards.
Initial Impressions
There are two readily available versions of this deck
around today. One version is a photo reproduction that
is approximately the same size as the original deck. The
other is approximately half size and is of high quality
with lavish gold foil work that replicates the gilding
of the original deck.
Having an extensive background in gilding, calligraphy
and heraldry, the technical aspects of the production of
these cards fascinated me. It was the latter deck with
its gold foil work that I initially bought and it was the
detail in reproduction that allowed an in depth analysis
to take place.
The more I looked at these cards the more I found myself
drawn being drawn deeper into this fascinating world of “lost
knowledge” (for lack of a better name).
All of the cards share a common background of incised
gilding. The alignment and repeated accuracy of the incising
was too well executed to put down to chance, there was
definite evidence emerging that these cards were designed
and made to a precise geometric grid.
Through the symbolism of heraldry a person was able to
show his/her pedigree, the illiterate could recognise a
household or show an allegiance. The heraldic emblems and
rules of use may also be subtly manipulated to draw attention
to an underlying message to the initiated.
In addition to the heraldry, some of the general artwork
contained anomalies when compared with contemporary art
of the period.
I have used the standard numbering of the cards for clarity,
but this does not necessarily reflect the order in which
they were analysed.
As a point of interest it was the Papess card that first
aroused my interest, followed by the Fool and then the
Magician. However it was the Magician that gave me the
key to the geometric code (Fig 2). The other cards then
slowly fell into place.
Figure 2 - Papess, Fool and Magician
The following cards are a representative sample of all
the cards analysed.
0 Fool: The first thing that
struck me about this card was the seven feathers in the
Fools hair. There is a significance to the number seven
in the Bible ie. sevenfoldness in the Revelation of St
John (the seven horned lamb, the seven branched candelabra).
There is also a secular/superstitious aspect as in the
seven wonders of the world, lucky seven etc.
The symbolism of this figure came through to me as a person
alone in the world, a club for forcing change, feathers
that represent quills ie. the written laws, bedraggled
clothing and bared flesh a sacrifice, the footless socks
a long journey.
This appeared to me as a cryptic renaissance portrayal
of a much earlier Christian story. What is the significance
of the green hills in the background?
I Magician: For a period
of highly developed art and the reputation of the assigned
artist, the perspective of the table in this card is almost
amateurish, yet the figure of the Magician is quite detailed
and refined (Fig 3).
Figure 3 - Magician
The knife on the table has a strange shaped blade.
A magician of this period in time was a wanderer, going
from place to place like a circus performer today. A conjuror,
a charlatan, a bagatella, a trickster of no standing in
society, yet here he is depicted in fine clothing. In fact
he is wearing a cloak of red lined with fur (ermine). This
is the cloak of a noble and is still used today on ceremonial
occasions in England for Peers of the Realm.
II Papess (High Priestess): A
female Pope? This was an acceptable case for the Cathars
and some other groups who believed in equality of the sexes,
amongst other heresies of the (Roman) Catholic Church.
She is pregnant, almost emphasising her femininity, and
wearing the habit of a nun of the heretical Guglielminites,
a sect that had a female Pope.
Could be alluding to an association to the Merovingian
dynasty and the claim of tracing their lineage back to
the Holy bloodline of Jesus and Mary Magdelene.
Heraldically, a book implies knowledge. If the book is
open it represents learning or the sharing of knowledge.
In this case the book is closed which could mean that the
knowledge (gnosis) is there but it is only available to
those who look for it or to the initiated.
V Hierophant (Pope): The
Pope is wearing a triple (temporal) crown as opposed to
the triple (papal) tiara.
The dictionary meaning of hierophant is for a priest,
one who teaches the mysteries of religion. This is different
to both the meaning and role to that of pope, a leader,
the head of the Church, inheritor of the throne of Peter.
The Hierophant shares the same motif design on his clothes
as the Lovers and Wheel cards.
VII Chariot: The Charioteer’s
headdress is in the style of a bishop’s mitre. To
the Roman Catholic faith, a female bishop was another Cathar
heresy.
The orb and baton (sceptre), dais and the Charioteer herself
are all in the same proportion to the Emperor, although
the ord is minus the cross pattee and the baton of the
Charioteer is at the same angle (reversed) to that of the
Emperor.
The dais appears to be floating over the chariot, not
attached to it.
VIII Justice: This is the
only card under consideration that has the top section
painted, thus obscuring the incised gilding of the other
cards.
This is not Justice as we know her in the legal sense,
for she is not blindfolded here and she wears a royal crown.
Her serene countenance, the raised sword in one hand and
the balanced scales in the other may allude to the perfect
(divine) balance between temporal the spiritual worlds.
The passage from the temporal, represented by the sword,
to the spiritual, represented by the balanced scales, is
depicted by the journey of the horseman above Justice.
There is a direct allusion to two sources of light in
the top right and left hand corners. It is not the light
of the sun as we know it, but leaving the light of the
temporal world and transiting to the light of the spiritual
world.
The horseman is obviously a knight of some standing by
his horse and the armour he is wearing but he is not wearing
a helmet or carrying a shield, suggesting he is on an errand,
as opposed to going into battle. Heraldically he is going
backwards, retreating. Is he harking back to an earlier
time or life, returning to the spiritual world from which
he came?
The sword held by Justice is at the same angle as the
sword held by the Supreme Onlooker on the Judgement card.
Justice wears the same pattern and coloured garments as
those of the central figure in The Wheel and the male figure
in The Lovers.
Justice wears the same pattern but different coloured
garments as those of the Pope and the female figure in
The Lovers.
VIIII Hermit: The hermit’s
staff is held at the same angle, reversed, to the Charioteer’s
staff.
He is an old man on a journey, weary from what he has
already endured or that which lies ahead, journeying in
the light as he goes forever (heraldically) forward, the
hourglass he carries marks off the time.
His clothing is not that typical of a hermit and even
suggests he is a person of standing within his community.
XI Strength: Not in original
deck although, although there was something that kept drawing
my interest back to this card.
Scholars have placed the painting/introduction of this
card to approximately 1470 and Antonio Cicognara or Piero
della Francesca as the probable artist. If we are looking
for an esoteric geometry connection, the most likely artist
would have to be Piero della Francesca. This would place
the artist and timeframe into the picture as a candidate
(for esoteric geometry reasons) for inclusion.
There is a look of anguish on the face of the assailant,
his club is a primitive weapon for taking on the defeat
of a lion, the symbol authority.
XII Hanged Man: A near representation
of the archetype of this card. It is much less cluttered
with symbols and adornments than the later developments,
yet the essence of the body language is the same.
This reminds me of the Celtic/Occitan legends of Merlin,
the Madman of the Forrest. He was the consummate seer,
he who saw life from a different view point to others,
as looking into a mirror on the wall, or the reflection
of the landscape in a lake, everything is reversed, one
is horizontal, the other vertical, but still reality remains
ever present. This is the ultimate Divine Madness that
was venerated by the old Celtic religion that was so entrenched
in the Occitan region where traces of it remain today in
the local folklore.
The frame from which the man hangs is not a sturdy frame
as one would expect for supporting the weight of a man.
With the mitred corner joints it more represents a doorframe.
Could this be the door between worlds? In the Celtic/Occitan
myths, Merlin had an earthly (human) mother and a non human
father. He straddled two worlds and attained the status
of Priest of Nature. If the hanged man was not bound by
rope to the frame he would be defying nature and that would
be a betrayal of his acquired knowledge and heritage.
What is the significance of the two blue hills?
XXI World: Not in original
deck, although it is the only card to represent Jerusalem,
an important entity in the Cathar story.
This card stood out as an anomaly by the representation
of the cherubs. They are not typical of the time.
Comparison of Common Clements
The following diagrams show the relationship of the cards
by linking common design elements i.e. clothes, background,
foreground, etc.
Figures 4 and 5 are based on the original fourteen cards
and figures 6 and 7 have the extra six cards included.
The manner in which the extra cards were able to be embedded
into the existing sequence shows a level of knowledge of
the second artist at least equal to that of the first.
Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6
Figure 7
Piecing Together the Puzzle
The underlying geometric template determines the sequence
of how the individual cards abut one another. The process
of uncovering this geometry was quite involved and is the
basis for an article in its own right. Figure 8 shows the
Magician matrix with some of the underlying pattern.
Figure 8 - Magician Matrix
Figure 9 - Magician in Detail
As the overall card matrix appeared, it was immediately
obvious as to where Strength and The World cards belonged,
however at the time of writing there is still some conjecture
where the Sun, Moon, Star and Temperance cards belong (Fig
10).
Figure 10
Assigning Identities to the Cards
The following is a summary of the original fourteen cards.
0 Fool: Jesus. He
carries a club, not in an aggressive manner like Strength,
but on the shoulder, intimidating, ready for use at a moments
notice. He can feel secure with the Word of God ever present.
The trappings of fine clothing and easy living were of
no concern to Him. His has been a long dusty journey, the
religious laws were challenged and he bared his flesh for
the ultimate sacrifice.
I Magician: Paul (the Apostle). The
teachings and structure of mainstream Christianity is also
known as Pauline Theology. That is it is based on the teachings
of Paul. A lot of Roman Catholic dogma has been extrapolated
by theologians from the original teaching (letters) of
Paul and therefore does not appear in the sacred texts.
The Cathars believed that Paul took the burgeoning Church
away from the rightful heir, James the brother of Jesus
and led the movement on a path that culminated in the Roman
Catholic Church.
Paul was considered a magician or conjurer by the manner
in which he took the word of tolerance and the path of
salvation out of the hands of the individual and vested
all power in an intolerant bureaucracy with the Pope as
its titular head.
Note: There is another branch of Christianity which derives
its roots from Paul and is called Paulician Theology. This
is associated with some Gnostic groups who believe that
the teachings of Paul were similar to Jesus the Essene,
but Pauls work, along Jesus’s was misrepresented
to invest power in the leaders of the Church.
II Papess (High Priestess): Mary,
Mother of Jesus. The most highly revered
woman in Christendom (and Islam). Not only Mother of
Jesus, but also mother of James and aunt of John the
Baptist. According to popular theology, Mary ascended
bodily to Heaven to reign with the Father and the Son.
In Cathar theology, upon resurrection/ascension we
leave the mortal remains behind, it is the Soul that
is released to resume its rightful place in heaven.
It is upon this premise that Mary’s position
of intermediary, just below god the Father and the
Son would be represented as a Pope.
V Pope (Hierophant): James, brother
of Jesus. He led the fledgling Jerusalem
Church after the death and resurrection of Jesus but
was eventually overtaken by the teachings of the Apostle
Paul. Some Gnostic teachings have James as the true
successor to Jesus and Paul as a manipulator/conjurer/magician,
a false prophet who misrepresented the word of their
Lord.
The Roman Catholic Church is based on Pauline theology
and declared Gnostic theology a heresy. Even though the
Gnostics did not have a hierarchy of bishops, cardinals
and popes, they considered James to be the true heir to
the “Papal” Throne.
XII Hanged Man: The “Divine
Madness”, sees life from a different
perspective, lives between two worlds, the spiritual
and the physical. The eternal spirit, the threshold
which defines the transcendence of Jesus from humanity
to divinity.
XIII Death: The physical death
of the body. Paul took the new movement
out of the hands of James (the Jerusalem Church) and
consequently on a path away from gnosis. Without gnosis
a soul could not be received into communion with the
Godhead.
Figure 11
The Missing Cards
Of the original fourteen cards in the major arcana in
this deck, two are missing and a further six have been
added to make the deck up to the modern 22 card major arcana.
Of the eight substitute cards (Strength, Temperance, Star,
Moon, Sun, Devil, Tower and World), the Devil and Tower
are obviously from a different hand and a much later time
period.
The Identification of Characters chart was re-examined
and it was found that John the Baptist and Jerusalem were
missing from the story.
Referring to the Card Spread and Matrix charts, John the
Baptist’s position was identified as being below
the Papess (Mary) and between the Pope (James) and Fool
(Jesus) cards (Fig 11).
Example:
XI Strength: Scholars have
placed the painting/introduction of this card to approximately
1470 and Antonio Cicognara or Piero della Francesca as
the probable artist. If we are looking for an esoteric
geometry connection, the most likely artist would have
to be Piero della Francesca. This would place the artist
and timeframe into the picture as a candidate (for esoteric
geometry reasons) for inclusion.
There is a look of anguish on the face of the assailant,
his club is a primitive weapon for taking on the defeat
of a lion, the symbol authority
Identity: John the Baptist, the wild man of the
wilderness/desert. He confronted the authorities with scant
regard for the consequences. He was a man on a mission
he did not relish and knew the consequences that his actions
would eventually bring on himself. He shares the same weapon
as the Fool, a club, the Word of God with which he tries
in vain to force change.
Figure 12
The Cathar Story
The story is about Moses (Hermit) leading
the chosen people forward through the wilderness in the
light of the one true God. The Godhead (Emperor and Empress)
is a dual entity of equal/complimentary opposites held
together by the influence of the Holy Spirit (Chariot).
Mary (Papess) is the mother of Jesus
(Fool) and James (Pope)
and aunt of John the Baptist (Strength).
On the death of Jesus, James is leader (Pope) of the Jerusalem
Church, but this is later consumed into the new Christian
movement spearheaded by Paul (Magician).
Paul’s new Christianity and Jesus are linked by
fate (Wheel). It is by fate that Jesus
and Mary Magdalene find one another and they are linked
in spirit and body (Lovers). Upon this
union, and with the support of Mary Magdalene, Jesus attains
the highest level of Gnosis (divinity). With the guidance
of the Holy Spirit (Justice), He is transported
from the physical world to the spiritual where His divinity
is recognized, where He is in communion with the Godhead.
He now views the world from a different perspective (Hanged
Man). He is not dead, but living on an ethereal
plain.
Those that follow Paul will be judged (Judgment).
Some will be consigned to death (Death),
whilst others who have heeded the call of the Spirit will
be raised to see the New Jerusalem (World)
descend upon the earth.
Conclusion
There is still more work to be carried out on this project
but I feel that:
- the evidence is that there is a strong Gnostic/Cathar
link with this deck.
- the first and second artists were in possession of
esoteric knowledge.
- the second artist had sufficient knowledge to extend
the pattern to incorporate the additional cards.
- the underlying pattern on which the cards are based
can be traced back to the great Pyramid of Cheops.
- the underlying geometry appears in manuscripts and
rituals that postdate the Cathars.
This deck and its two artists represent a snapshot in
time of a long history of esoteric knowledge. It also represents
the lengths an autocratic organisation (the established
Church) will extend the tentacles of power to protect its
own self-interests, where the survival of the organization
takes precedence over the liberties and lives of the people
it purports to serve.
Above all it also shows the determination of the human
spirit in the face of overwhelming adversity. The Cathars
had no hope of winning against the might of Rome (Vatican)
and the burgeoning powers of France, but were determined
that their story would be held safe for future generations
to know when the light of knowledge would overcome the
darkness of sheer force and brutality.
They left their legacy in plain sight, under the noses
of their oppressors. The cards represented opulence for
the gratification of a privileged ruling class, the exact
antithesis of their own beliefs.
By some circuitous path through history, the esoteric
knowledge came to be entrusted with the Cathars and then
passed on to another stream with their eventual demise.
The geometric principles contained in these cards can be
traced through rituals in Alchemy, the Rosicrusians and
Freemasons degrees that postdate the Cathars.
Figure 13
Their spirit lives on. I know because I saw it in the
cards.
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