In the Sola-Busca, all the courts except the Pages are even given names; they correspond to legendary and historical figures, some pertaining to the Trojan War and others from the life of Alexander the Great. The two time periods are connected, in that the main female figure of one, Olympia the mother of Alexander, was said to descend from the main female figure of the other, Polyxena, youngest daughter of Priam and Hecuba, King and Queen of Troy. It is possible that the pages also correspond to figures in these legends; if so, no one has been able to figure out who they are..
The court figures in other decks of that period do not look like the ones of the Sola-Busca and probably cannot be identified with the same legendary or historical personalities.
In the Sola-Busca, the courts also correlate, more or less, to the four temperaments, one per suit. The correlations, with two exceptions and four which have no clear assignment (out of sixteen total), are based on specific details that conventionally are associated with particular temperaments. The assignments of suits to temperaments has been detailed by Marco at http://forum.tarothistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=530#p7367. This of course has nothing to do with Neopythagoreanism.
THE SOLA BUSCA PAGES
Here are the Pages:
Swords plays a lute. Coins plays with birds, at least one of which is a falcon on its perch, Cups is tending either a fire or "blooming plants" (Di Vicenzo p. 54) coming out of his suit-symbol, while carrying a purse; and Batons is walking somewhere, carrying a purse by its strings, what looks like a letter in his boot, and a stiletto in his belt.
There is also the emotional mood conveyed by the bodies and especially faces of the young men here. Swords and Coins look contemplative. Cups is simply observing, perhaps with a certain amount of wonderment. And Batons is rather jaunty, with a slight smile.
I see no Neopythagreanism whatever in these images. Unlike the Aces, none represents any aspect of the Pythagorean One or Monad, which is the equivalent to God. Their only association with the number One is that they are all youths starting out in life.
Much the same impression may be gotten from looking at the Etteilla School's word-lists for these cards.For cups, there is the word "student," suggesting someone starting a scholarly or clerical career, and words like "bent" or "Inclination" which might attach to the selection of a career..
"PAGE OF CUPS, UPRIGHT: FAIR YOUNG MAN (GARCON BLOND), Studious.—Student, Application [Diligence], Work, Thought, Observation, Consideration, Reflection, Contemplation, Job.—Business, Profession, Employment. REVERSED. TENDENCY (PENCHANT). Bent, Proclivity, Inclination, Attraction, Taste, Sympathy, Passion, Affection, Attachment, Friendship.—Heart, Craving, Desire, Appeal, Promise, Seduction, Invitation, Agreeableness.—Flattery, Cajolery, Fawning, Sycophancy, Praise, Approbation.—Inclined towards threatening ruin and complete destruction.I see nothing here to suggest the Sola-Busca Cups' image of a youth before a blooming plant or fire.
For coins there is "apprentice," suggesting the start of a career in business, and again words like "scholar", Student", "Disciple", etc., which could apply to someone preparing for any career.
PAGE OF COINS: BROWN-HAIRED YOUNG MAN (GARCON BRUN), Study, Instruction, Diligence [not in c. 1838], Application, Meditation, Reflection.—Work, Occupation, Apprenticeship.—Scholar, Disciple, Student, Apprentice, Amateur, Pupil, Speculator, Negotiator [last 2 not in c. 1838]. REVERSED: PRODIGALITY (PRODIGALITE). [Extravagance, c. 1838], Profession [not in c. 1838, which has Profusion], Superfluity, Magnanimity, Luxuriousness, Sumptuousness, Splendor, Abundance, Myriad.—Liberality, Kind Deed.—Generosity, Charity.—Crowd, Multitude.—Degradation, Wasting, Pillage, Dissipation.Again, I see no relationship to the Sola-Busca, which has a youth with a falcon.
For Batons the words suggestion instruction or educations are in the Reverseds. In the Uprights, we have "Stranger". which perhaps suggests someone starting afresh in a new town, if not necessarily someone of a young age. The SB Batons youth does appear to be traveling.Here is Etteilla:
PAGE OF BATONS, UPRIGHT: STRANGER (ETRANGER) [c. 1838 GOOD STRANGER, (BON ETRANGER)], Unknown, Extraordinary.—Strange, Uncommon, Unusual, Unheard Of, Surprising, Admirable, Wonderful, Marvel, Miracle.—Episode, Digression, Anonymous. REVERSED: NEWS (NOUVELLE). Announcement, Instruction, Opinion, Warning, Admonition, Anecdotes, News, History, Stories, Fables, Postmen [?] [not in c. 1838, which has Notiens], Education.In this case there is another detail in the Sola-Busca card that suggests some of these words: the note in the youth's boot, which might fit "News" "Announcement" etc.But this has nothing to do with numbers or Neopythagoreanism.
Again, swords:
PAGE OF SWORDS, UPRIGHT: SPY (ESPION). Overseer, Onlooker, Observer, Searcher, Connoisseur, Intendant.—Examination, Note, Remark, Observation, Annotation, Speculation, Count, Calculation, Computation—Learned, Artistic. REVERSED. WITHOUT WARNING (IMPREVUE) [c. 1838, LACK OF FORESIGHT (IMPREVOYANCE). Sudden, Suddenly, Suddenly Interrupting [not in c. 1838], Astonishing, Surprising, Unexpectedly.—Improvise, Act and Speak Without Preparation, Compose and Recite Straightaway [last 2 not in c. 1838, which has Unhoped-for, Fortuitously].Again there are words pertaining to someone setting out in life (Examination, Calculation, Learned, Artistic, even the ability to speak extemporaneously), but nothing related to the Pythagorean Monad..
The only remaining issue I see concerning the SB Pages is how to assign the four temperaments among them, related to the items that are with them on the card and the moods exicited by the four youths. The determination is a matter of seeing what temperaments these details are associated with in other imagery of the time. I refer the interested reader to my post on Tarot History Forum about this issue, http://forum.tarothistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=530&start=40#p8973 and my post following that one.
In general, as I argue, it is not easy to say which temperament is associated with which page. Since this question is not one that pertains to Neopythagoreanism, I will not spend any longer on it. In fact, I see no ready association between the Neopythagorean One and the pages, either the sB images or the Etteilla word lists. All I see is youths just starting out in life, and to that extent appropriate to the number 1 as the first of the numbers.
By the same token, it is not hard to associate the number 2 with the Knights: there are two creatures represented on each of these cards, the knight and his horse. Similarly, 3 associates the Queens with the third tarot trump, the Empress, and 4 associates the Kings with the tarot Emperor. Since no pictures are necessary to make these associations, there is no need for me to repreoduce here the corresponding Sola-Busca cards. .
THE MARSEILLE PAGES
I also do not see any Neopythagoreanism at work in the traditional Marseille images of the courts, except for the simple one of beginnings. For the differentition among suits, I see see more intricate connections between trumps and courts than the simple ones I have already indicated. In particular, the pages are visually related to the Bateleur and the Lover, the knights to the Popess (ii) and the Chariot (VII), the Queens to the Empress (III) and Justice (VIII), and the Kings to the Emperor (IIII) and the Hermit (VIIII). I will illustrate.
To begin with, compare the left side of the Bateleur, holding a coin, with the left side of the Page of Coins, and the right side, holding his wand, with the right side of the Page of Batons.
So we might say that the Page of Batons holds an instrument capable of performing magical transformations. For someone only used to using his fists as weapons, a club is magical indeed. By the same token, the Page of Coins might be seen as holding an object upon which magic can be performed. In the hands of a clever banker, indeed, coins can be made to multiply--and disappear in the hands of someone not so clever.
Similarly, the wreath on the Page of Cups give us a basis for comparing him with the girl on the right side of the Lover card, trump VI. The one in the middle, making the choice, is comparable in posture to the Page of Swords. And the profile of the woman on the left is comparable in profile to the Page of Batons (even more in the Conver Lover card, where her left hand reaches down toward the man). In this interpretation the Page of Batons is a hesitant lover, the Page of Swords someone faced with a difficult choice, and the Page of Batons someone who represents virtue.
Perhaps surprisingly, this interpretation fits certain pages even in the 15th century. The CY Male and Female Pages of Cups resemble the man and woman on the Love card.
The PMB Page of Batons has the green gloves suggestive of sexuality and fertility that all the PMB Baton court figures wear, comparable to the large club of the Noblet page and of course to the phallic finger of the Bateleur. The d'Este Page of Batons holds himself with pride, as though representing virtue.
Only the Page of Swords does not fit the Noblet's charactaerization, as seen here (above rigt) in the PMB. He strikes a confident pose. Other Pages of Swords show him with is sword raised in attack, again with an air of confidence. The Noblet is not like that. I speculate that this difference has to do with the changing nature of war in the space of 200 years. The introduction of gunpowder made it much more deadly than previously, a fact that did not go unobserved in the literature of the time. Swords were the privilege of the nobility. The son of an officer might know more about the effectiveness of cannons than a club-wielding peasant whose village had not yet been caught up in war.
THE ETTEILLA PAGES
Here the Etteilla word-lists are useful in showing what people made of these figures over the course of time. n my view the word-lists were standard meanings developed using traditional Marseille-type images of the court figures. Etteilla's artist then used these word-lists, or at least the keywords, as the basis for his own depictions. Thus for our purposes how the cards look is much less important than the word-lists, in fact quite unnecessary. For that reason I am not even going to post here the Etteilla images; for anyone interested, a good site with historic cards is http://sumada.multiply.com/photos/album/83/Etteilla_1_-_Grimaud.
The meanings indicated by the word-lists sometimes do seem to relate to how Etteilla characterized the suits in his Lecons Theorique-Pratique du Livre de Thot, as relating to his imagined social structure of ancient Egypt. Batons was agriculture, Cups the priestly class, Swords the military, and Coins the business people.
In Batons, the Uprights perhaps suggest something of the Marseille Bateleur (an association we have already looked at), with words like "Extraordinary", "Marvel" and "Miracle". The different meaning of "Stranger" also relates to the Bateleur, in that street conjurers usually traveled from one town to another in rapid succession. Their interest was in their novelty, and also in news they might bring from other places.
ETTEILLA, PAGE OF BATONS: Stranger, Unknown, Extraordinary.—Strange, Uncommon, Unusual, Unheard Of, Surprising, Admirable, Wonderful, Marvel, Miracle.—Episode, Digression, Anonymous. REVERSED: Announcement, Instruction, Opinion, Warning, Admonition, Anecdotes, News, History, Stories, Fables, Notions [c. 1838 "Notion"], Education.In Cups, the Lover is suggested in the Reverseds, although these meanings could also have been suggested by the French suit equivalent of Hearts.. The Uprights suggest his youth, as well as the beginning of a clerical or scholarly occupation, or a profession like law or medicine."Fair" comes from the color of the suit of Hearts (as opposed to the darker Spades and Clubs)..
ETTEILLA, PAGE OF CUPS: Fair [Fr. Blond] Young Man, Studious.—Student, Application [Diligence], Work, Thought, Observation, Consideration, Reflection, Contemplation, Job [not in c. 1838].—Business [c. 1838 has Occupation], Profession, Employment. REVERSED: Tendency, Bent, Proclivity, Inclination, Attraction, Taste, Sympathy, Passion, Affection, Attachment, Friendship.—Heart, Craving, Desire, Appeal, Promise, Seduction, Invitation, Agreeableness.—Flattery, Cajolery, Fawning, Sycophancy [not in c. 1838, which has Adulation], Praise, Approbation.—Inclined towards threatening ruin and complete destruction. [This last, starting with "Inclined" not in c. 1838, which has instead Courtier, Coax, Entice, Siren Song (Courtisan, Amadouer, Aflecher, Chant des Sirenes)].In Coins, the banker's son is suggested, as well as his youth, and his entering the beginning of an occupation.. The Reverseds suggest the trappings and dangers of wealth:
ETTEILLA, PAGE OF COINS, DARK YOUNG MAN (GARÇON BRUN): Study, Instruction, Diligence [not in c. 1838], Application, Meditation, Reflection.—Work, Occupation, Apprenticeship.—Scholar, Disciple, Student, Apprentice, Amateur, Pupil, Speculator, Negotiator [last 2 not in c. 1838]. REVERSED, PRODIGALITY (PRODIGALITÉ): Profession [not in c. 1838, which has Profusion], Superfluity, Magnanimity, Luxuriousness, Sumptuousness, Splendor, Abundance, Myriad.—Liberality, Kind Deed.—Generosity, Charity.—Crowd, Multitude.—Degradation, Wasting, Pillage, Dissipation.In Swords, we have the keyword "Spy" in the uprights, along with "onlooker." I have an idea where these come from. In Italy young noblemen were sent to other courts for military training, ones that presumably they would not be fighting.. For example, the d'Este princes were sent to Naples. Yet such young men could also be expected to report back to their fathers about what was going on in the courts they had been sent to, in other words to observe and perhaps spy (in the sense of learning things they are not supposed to learn).
ETTEILLA, PAGE OF SWORDS, SPY (ESPION): Spy, Curious [from c. 1838], Onlooker, Observer, Searcher, Overseer, [Connoisseur--not in c. 1838, which has "Amateur"], Intendant [Entendant, i.e. Discerning].—Examination, Note, Remark, Observation, Annotation, Speculation, Count, Calculation, Computation—Learned, Artistic. [last 6 not in c. 1838] REVERSED, UNFORESEEN (IMPRÉVU): [c. 1838 WITHOUT FORESIGHT (IMPREVOYANCE)]: Sudden, Suddenly, Suddenly Interrupting [last 3 not in c. 1838], Astonishing, Surprising, Unexpectedly. [Fortuitously, c. 1838]—Improvise, Act and Speak Without Preparation, Compose and Recite Straightaway [last 2 not in c. 1838].In the reversed, we have the situation of someone being taught the skills of foresight and, conversely, doing things by surprise. These are good skills for a military leader to have.
THE MARSEILLE AND ETTEILLA KNIGHTS
XII corresponds to the Knights. The corresponding low numbers in the trumps are II and VII. Since II is a female figure, without any horses, we can skip it for now. But there are interesting parallels to the Chariot.
What is of interest, in relation to the Noblet Knights, are the horses. Notice their color. One chariot horse is peach or light red, the other gray. In the Knights, Batons' horse is all peach, while Coins' is all gray (except for the mane). Both Cups' and Swords' horses are, in the legs, part one and part the other.
What could this set of arrangements mean? In Plato's Phaedrus, one horse, the red or dark one, acts from the sensuous impulse to possess the beautiful object, and the other from thought and recollection of the archetype of beauty. Perhaps Batons is the one acting from impulse, and Coins the one acting from thought. This distinction between two "parts of the soul" was very much alive in the Renaissance. For example, it is in the French philosopher Pierre de la Primaudaye. (4):
...But the most sensible, common and true opinion, which the wisest among the Philosophers had of the soule, is that which divideth it into two parts onely, under which all the rest are comprised: the one being spiritual and intelligible, where the discourse of reason is; the other brutush, which is the sensuall will, of itself wandring and disordred, where all motions contrarie to reason, and all evill desires have their dwelling...The peach color, as we have seen, is actually darker on the original, and perhaps more red than peach. It is the color of the Chariot's inferior horse, the one that responds energetically to what he sees without the restraints imposed by Reason. Correspondingly, the all-peach horse is that of Batons and the peasants. Peasants, on this conception, live in a world of bodily appetites and feeling without abstract thought. They plow, plant, harvest, and store, and in between have as much fun as their hard lives will allow. If they rebel, it will be spontaneous, ill-prepared, and sandwiched in between farm duties. If it isn't over quickly, they lose, and it is never over quickly.
The peasant rebels in response to his senses--his hunger, and his numbers, against his few masters--without thinking through the forces against him and his own limitations. The merchant, to get rich, has to ignore his impulses--to reduce his prices to those in need, for example, or to trade in what he likes rather than what will sell--and consider thoughtfully how best to make his profit, comparing expenses to the price at which he can best sell his goods. It is a heartless business. The warrior, however, needs both the fire of impulse against his enemy and a thoughtfulness about how to best win a conflict. Likewise the monk or lover needs both the flame of desire, leading him to the "divine madness," and the rationality that will keep him from overzealousness and real madness. Or so I imagine Plato's framework in the context of the four Knights.
In the Knights of Swords vs. Batons, there is a suggestion of class distinction. Peasants were not allowed to own or use swords; their only defense was a club. And in fact in the 16th century and 17th centuries there were horrible battles in the countryside of Europe. The worst was in the 1520's, when hundreds of thousands of German peasants rose up against their masters in hopes of a better life under Protestantism. Luther did not support them, and hundreds of thousands were slaughtered by the bearers of the sword.
The German artist Albrecht Durer was moved to design a monument to these peasants, which of course never was built. (The part at right is the continuation upwards of the base at left.) At the top is a peasant in despair, a sword in his back, while below his own weapons--scythes, hoes, shovels, and other tools of his work--are tied tightly together. (10)
To the peasants it must have seemed impossible at first to lose their struggle, so much did the they outnumber their masters. But numbers are not everything: he knows nothing of war. Moreover, in a war one needs to eat, and the only food is the harvest, to which this same rebel must attend in place of his war.
The Page of Batons looks at his impressive club with confidence; it will service him, he thinks. But the Knight is not so sure; already he is wheeling his horse around.
Here is Etteilla, starting in Swords:
KNIGHT OF SWORDS, UPRIGHT: SOLDIER (MILITAIRE), Man With a Sword, Man-At-Arms, Fencing Master, Swordsman.—Soldier From an Entire Corps or Army [c. 1838 simply has Soldat, i.e. Soldier], Combatant, Enemy.—Dispute, War, Combat, Battle, Duel.—Attack, Address [not in c. 1838], Defense, Opposition, Resistance, Destruction, Ruin, Reversal.—Enmity, Hate, Wrath [c. 1838 Colere, Anger], Resentment.—Courage, Valor, Bravery.—Satellite [Attendant], Mercenary [Stipendiary]. REVERSED: IGNORANCE (IGNORANCE), Incompetence, Ineptitude, Foolishness, Folly, Stupidity [Imbecility], Imprudence, Impertinence, Extravagance, Ridicule, Silliness.—Fraud, Swindling, Mischief, Cunning. [last 4 not in c. 1838]These words describe the professional soldier, in all his fearsomeness, and also his folly.
Batons seems to me to describe the peasant who has lost:
ETTEILLA, KNIGHT OF BATONS, UPRIGHT: DEPARTURE (DEPART), Moving, Alienation, Absence, Abandonment, Change, Flight, Desertion, Transmigration, Emigration.—Transposition, Translation, Transplantation, Transmutation, Escape. REVERSED: DISUNITY (DESUNION) Discord, Breach, Rupture, Dissension, Division, Going Off, Separation, Splitting Up.—Faction—Quarrel, Sorting Out—Cut, Break, Discontinuity, Interruption.The peasants, to survive, have to be on the move. Even though they are tied to the soil, yet in the 16th17th centuries the old feudal relationships were changing, due to the wars of religion--changing but not ending. Many tens of thousands died. Those that didn't, moved so as to serve the lord practicing their own religion. Or they became independent but landless, migrating to the cities or emigrating to the New World.
Now Cups:
KNIGHT OF CUPS, UPRIGHT: ARRIVAL (ARRIVE) Coming, Approach, Access, Reception, Entrance, Bringing Closer.— Similarity.—Advent, Reunion [c. 1838 only]. Approximation.—Accession To .—Flow [Fr. Affluence] .—Comparison [not in c. 1838]. REVERSED: ROGUERY (FRIPONNERIE) or Mischief, Deceit [1838 only, Fourberie], Villainy, Duplicity, Cunning, Artifice.—Keenness (c. 1838 has Dexterity, Adresse], Shrewdness, Suppleness, Trickery [c. 1838 only, Tricherie] Fraud.—Subtlety, Irregularity.—Evil Deed. [c. 1838 does not have last 2].We have "arrival" here because the horse, by its bowing, is clearly approaching. The knight is paying homage to his Lady, or to his Lord. The Reverseds warn of the danger, fealty misapplied.
And finally Coins:
KNIGHT OF COINS, UPRIGHT: UTILITY (UTILITE), Serviceable [not in c. 1838, which has Advantage], Benefit, Gain, Profit, Interest.—Profitable, Interesting, Worthwhile, Important, Necessary, Obliging, Officious. REVERSED: INACTION (INACTION), Peace, Tranquility, Repose, Sleep, Apathy, Inertia, Stagnation, Inactivity, Idleness [Unemployment].—Leisure, Pass-times [should be "pastime"].—Recreation, Carefree, Nonchalance, Indolence, Laziness, Doing Nothing, Dullness, Discouragement, Exhaustion [not in c. 1838, which has Aneantissement, i.e. Annihilation, Ruin].The Uprights emphasize this knight's role as a traveling representative of a merchant or banking firm. He must ingratiate himself with the local powers that be and selling himself to them. The Reverseds are again the opposites of his industriousness, many of them dangers to be avoided.
With this information, I can think of characters in classical literature that fit these Knights. The Knight of Swords is classically a natural-born knight, like Parsifal. Or someone cold-bloodedly calculating, like Octavius Caesar, as described by Plutarch. The Knight of Cups is classically Paris, whose love of Helen started the Trojan War. There is also Tristan, betraying his Lord for love of his Lady. The Knight of Batons is someone who leaves the fray rather than fighting to the finish, so as to live to fight another day. There are not many models in literature. There are the Greeks at Troy; but they only seemed to retreat.
References, the Knights
4. the soul, according to La Primaudaye: The French Acadamie, translated by T.B., 1586, p. 24.
8. From Kaplan, Encyclopedia of Tarot, Vol. 2, p. 277.
10. Durer: image from Karl-Adolf Knappe, Durer: The Complete Engravings, Etchings, and Woodcuts, p. 369.
11. de Mellet: in his section IV, Karlin, p. 56.
THE MARSEILLE AND ETTEILLA QUEENS
The tarot Queens reflect all the females of the trumps early in the sequence, Popess and Justice as well as Empress. And the ambiguities of the Death card (XIII) appear in the Queens as well: Swords is a widow, while Batons embodies fertility.
In the earliest tarot Queens, the main iconographic similarity was with the Empress. But gradually more differentiation developed.
I will start with Coins. Here there is a clear similarity with the Empress, both in her staff and in the found object they hold. The Queen has been made older than the Empress, to match the age of her bearded husband the King of Coins. The Empress's clueless love of opulence is carried in the suits by the Queen of Coins, who perhaps now is not so clueless. Presumably their husbands are rich, either because of their office or their business.
The Etteilla School's word-list reflects this attribute of wealth in the Uprights. Wealth makes for a certain sense of security and hence boldness. The Reverseds have the opposite of this last.
The SB has for this card Helen of Troy, shown looking at herself in a mirror. Such a person certainly would like opulence and exhibit boldness. She would also be untrustworthy, from her husband's perspective. Another candidate would be Cleopatra, as Plutarch describes her.QUEEN OF COINS: BROWN-HAIRED WOMAN (FEMME BRUNE), Opulence, Wealth, Prosperous, Luxury, Magnificence.—Self-Confidence, Reliability, Trust, Certainty, Affirmation.—Security, Boldness, Liberty, Candor. REVERSED: CERTAIN EVIL (MAL-SUR, or MAL CERTAIN in c. 1838). Doubting, Unsure, Doubt, Indecision, Uncertainty.— Fear, Dread, Fright, Timidity, Apprehension, Wavering, Hesitation.—Undecided, Indecisive, Puzzled, in Suspense. [last 4 not in c. 1838]
In Cups, the similarity is with the Popess.
Both the Popess and the Queen of Cups look to our left at the sacred object they hold there, in the one case the Bible and the other case the cup. The veil behind the Popess is suggested by the fabric above the Queen's head. The religious aspect of the Popess has rubbed off on the Queen of Cups, reinforcing the religious interpretation of Cups made by de Gebelin and de Mellet.
The Etteilla School's word-list takes a different approach, emphasizing her honesty rather than her connection to God.
But one who is connected to God is supposedly full of virtue. The SB's Queen of Cups, Polyxena, youngest daughter of Priam, is virtuous, true to her country. And of distinguished rank. She was also dishonest with Achilles, betraying him to his enemies when he told her how he could be killed."ETTEILLA" QUEEN OF CUPS, UPRIGHT: FAIR WOMAN (FEMME BLONDE)—Honest Woman, Virtue, Wisdom, Honesty. REVERSED: WOMAN OF HIGH RANK (FEMME EN PLACE) [c. 1838 , WIFE OF A MAN OF HIGH RANK (FEMME D'HOMME EN PLACE), Honest Woman [not in c. 1838].—Vice, Dishonesty, Depravity, Dissoluteness, Corruption, Scandal.
It seems to me that the Queen's inspiration is not merely the words of a book, as suggested by the Popess, but her own direct connection to the divine. She looks at her cup in the way that a fortune-teller might look in her crystal ball. I am reminded of Cassandra, who was given the gift of prophecy and also the curse of having no one believe her. She spoke the truth. Shakespeare's Cassandra was similar, as well as the character of Margaret in his Richard III, who predicts the calamitous reign and downfall of Richard III.
In Swords, the parallel seems to me to be with the second trump with III in it, Justice.
However she looks at her sword with dismay. We can see why by looking at the Etteilla School's word-list.
Etteilla's 1773 book has, for Spades, "Femme veuve. R. Femme du monde, vous regarderez si c’est present, passe, ou avenir": "Widow. Reversed, woman of the world, you will watch if it is present, past, or future." The basic interpretation was there even then.ETTEILLA, QUEEN OF SWORDS, UPRIGHT: WIDOWHOOD (VEUVAGE), Widow, Privation, Absence, Dearth, Sterility, Indigence, Poverty.—Empty, Vacant, Deserted, Idle, Inactive, Unoccupied. [last 6 not in c. 1838]. REVERSED: EVIL WOMAN (MECHANTE FEMME).—Bale, Malice, Trickery, Subtlety, Artifice, Mischievousness, Bigotry, Prudery, Hypocrisy.
The Etteilla Reverseds may have come from the SB association. Olympias was said to have murdered her husband Phillip. This perhaps relates the card to the 13th trump, Death. She is also an evil woman: malicious, subtle, and tricky. The malicious nature of the Queen of Spades was by Tchaikovsky as the title role of an opera: she is the prototypical femme fatale.
The Queen of Swords' fate as widow seems to be in the cards quite early, as early as the d'Este deck. In contrast to the PMB (at left), there is a wistfulness as she waves good-bye to her husband going off to war, a fear that he will not return alive.
I suspect that it is part of the growing realization of the deadliness of gunpowder-based warfare, of which the Ferrarese had first-hand experience in the war with Venice of the 1470s.
For Batons, it may be that the card is drawing some inspiration from the Chariot card. The flesh-color in ignoble horse gets repeated in the Queen of Batons. She is the object of sensual love and so an image of fertility, as shown by her exposed nurturing breasts.
This connection to sex and fertility goes back at least to the PMB (at right), with its green gloves in all the Baton courts.
The Etteilla School's word-list emphasizes her relationship to the country and her qualities as a housewife.
QUEEN OF BATONS, UPRIGHT: WOMAN OF THE COUNTRY (FEMME DE COMPAGNE), Housewife, Economy, Honesty, Politeness.—Gentleness, Virtue.—Honor, Chastity. REVERSED: GOOD WOMAN (BONNE FEMME), Kindness, Excellence.—Obliging, Officious, Helpful.—Favor, Service, Duty.
THE MARSEILLE AND ETTEILLA KINGS
A 16th century proofsheet has this series of the four kings. Cups is pointing upwards, toward heaven. It is the cup as sacramental vessel. Batons point to himself. The baton is about his own authority. It is not clear where the other two are pointing, if anywhere. Perhaps one is pointing down and the other at us, but I cannot tell.
If we look at Kings of Swords in sequence, from Cary-Yale to the PMB and the d'Este (below), what we see is a victorious soldier who looks progressively more gloomy. As the highest member of a traditionally doleful suit, he has negative connotations. His skill and judgment decide matters of life, death, and other considerations of material life.
By the Noblet, he even looks fearful. With his sideways glance, he suspects even his friends, conveys both his power of life over death and how "uneasy lies the crown," as Shakespeare had a similar King of Swords say, in his Henry IV Part 2. He acts on behalf of Justice, but others have their idea of Justice, too.
Here is Etteilla; he has broadened the Kingship to include some of his subjects; yet even these form an exclusive club.
KING OF SWORDS, UPRIGHT: MAN OF THE LAW (HOMME DE ROBE), Lawyer, Judge, Councilor, Assessor, Senator, Businessman, Medical Practitioner, Attorney, Public Prosecutor, Doctor, Physician.—Jurist, Jurisprudence.—Litigant, Jurisconsult. REVERSED: HOMME MECHANT (EVIL MAN), Ill-Intentioned, Wickedness, Perversity, Perfidy, Crime, Cruelty, Barbarity, Inhumanity.The Reverseds give the downside of power backed by law.
The King of Batons bears a relationship to the Charioteer that complements his wife's. The Queen of Batons, as we have seen, took on the color of the reddish horse, signifying sensuous passion. Her husband has the color of the other horse, the noble one's dull white, his version of rule through rationality. From his picture, he would seem to be mostly concerned about his own authority, as in the 16th century black and white version. Another in the same tradition would seem to be the d'Este, in which the King merely stares at his baton, his symbol of authority
Here is the Etteilla School's take on the King of Batons.
KING OF BATONS, UPRIGHT: MAN OF THE COUNTRY (HOMME DE CAMPAGNE), Good and Strict [Stockman has "Austere") Man, Well Intentioned Man [last 2 not in c. 1838], Honest Man—Conscientiousness {Stockman has Conscience], Integrity.—Agriculturist, Laborer, Farmer. [1838 adds: Villager, Yokel (Rustre). REVERSED: GOOD AND SEVERE MAN (HOMME BON ET SEVERE).—Leniency, Austerity [c. 1838 has Indulgent Severity], Indulgence, Complaisance [last 2, c. 1838 only], Tolerance, Condescension.This list seems to alternate between severity and leniency. Well, he is still young. Historically the suit in general has to do with the countryside. The Noblet's green club, which goes back to the PMB's geen gloves, suggests the greenery of field, orchard and forest. Thus we have the designation "countryman." Etteilla's descriptions suggests the country gentleman, in all his honesty, friendliness, and conscientiousness in administering his estate, as opposed to other traits more likely cultivated by the absentee landlord in the city.
If the Queen of Cups relates to the Popess, it is to be expected that the Kign of Cups should be reminiscent of the Pope.
Here is the Etteilla School list for the King of Cups.
KING OF CUPS, UPRIGHT: FAIR-HAIRD MAN (HOMME BLOND), Honest Man, Integrity, Equity, Arts, Sciences. REVERSED: MAN OF HIGH RANK [HOMME EN PLACE], Honest Man [not in c. 1838].—Dishonest Man.—Exaction, Misappropriation of Public Funds, Injustice, Bandit, Swindler, Rogue.—Vice, Corruption, Scandal [Swindler and last 3 not in c. 1838, which has Waste [gaspillage], Embezzlement (Dilapidation), Thief (Voleur)]These attributes are similar to the Queen's. Positively, it is the man of calm vision whose passion is to a higher realm than this earth. "Fair" is Etteilla's association of this suit with Hearts, a red suit. In the Reverseds, I am reminded of Hamlet's uncle, the apparently generous and diplomatic King Claudius.
So we come to the King of Coins, who holds his suit sign near where the Emperor has his. Both are bearded, older figures.
The Etteilla School gives his professions in the Uprights:
KING OF COINS, UPRIGHT: BROWN-HAIRED MAN (HOMME BRUN), Shopkeeper, Merchant, Banker, Stockbroker, Calculator, Speculator, Physicist [c. 1838 only].—Physics, Geometry [c. 1838 only], Mathematics, Science—Teacher [British: Master], Professor. REVERSED: DEPRAVED MAN (HOMME VICIEUX), Vice, Flaw, Weakness, Defective, Faulty Conformation [not in c. 1838], Misshapen Nature.—Dissoluteness [c. 1838 dereglement, i.e. disorder], Ugliness, Deformity.—Corruption.—Arrogance [not in c. 1838, which has Puanteur, i.e. Stench].Merchants and businessmen are featured here, as well as the skills needed for success in business, a head for calculations.. The leap to mathematics in general is not a great one. The dark side of business is corruption. Historically the theme of the miser would have been included: not necessarily corrupt, just unfeeling; perhaps that is what Etteilla had in mind with "vice" and "misshapen nature." The term "brown-haired" in the list merely shows that Coins, for Etteilla, corresponds to the regular suit of Clubs.
A melancholia pervades this suit in Noblet, especially noticeable in the King. It is as though to say, riches don't buy happiness. Earlier ones were more genial (below, from left to right, the Cary-Yale, the PMB, and the d'Este).
Thank you, Professor Hogward. I consider myself to be your student, although I have never met you, I am very grateful. Thank you
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