The Tower (tarot card)

The Tower (XVI)(most common modern name) is the 16thtrumporMajor Arcanacard in most Italian-suitedtarotdecks. It has been used in tarot cards since the 15th century as well as indivinationsince the mid-19th century.

History

This card follows immediately afterThe Devilin all tarots that contain it, and is associated with sudden, disruptiverevelation,and potentially destructive change. Some early painted decks, such as theVisconti-Sforza tarot,do not contain it,^[1]and some tarot variants used for gameplay omit it.^[2]

Early printed decks that preserve all their cards do feature The Tower. In these decks the card bears a number of different names and designs. In theMinchiatedeck, the image usually shown is of two nude or scantily clad people fleeing the open door of what appears to be a burning building. In someBelgiantarots and the 17th-century tarot ofJacques Viéville,the card is calledLa FoudreorLa Fouldre('The Lightning'), and depicts a tree being struck by lightning. In the Tarot of Paris (17th century), the image shown is of the Devil beating his drums, before what appears to be the mouth of Hell; the card still is calledLa Fouldre.TheTarot of Marseillesmerges these two concepts, and depicts a burning tower being struck by lightning or fire from the sky, its top section dislodged and crumbling. Two men are depicted in freefall against a field of multicolored balls.^[3]Pamela Colman Smith's version is based on the Marseilles image, with small tongues of fire in the shape of Hebrewyodletters replacing the balls.^[4]

In this manuscript picture of theHarrowing of Hell,Jesusforces open the fiery tower gate ofHellto free the virtuous dead fromLimbo.The enactment of this scene inliturgical dramamay be one source of the image of the Tower.

The destruction of thetower of Babelis depicted in thisBulgarianmanuscript.

A variety of explanations for the images on the card have been attempted. For example, it may be a reference to the biblical story of theTower of Babel,where God destroys a tower built by mankind to reach Heaven.^[5]Alternatively, theHarrowing of Hellwas a frequent subject in theliturgical dramaof theLate Middle Ages,and Hell could be depicted as a great gate knocked asunder byJesus Christ.TheMinchiateversion of the deck may representAdam and Eve's expulsion from theGarden of Eden.^[3]

Symbolism

The Tower is widely associated to danger, crisis, sudden change, destruction, higher learning, and liberation.^[6]In the Rider–Waite deck, the top of The Tower is a crown, which symbolizes materialistic thought being bought cheap, downcast.^[7]

The Tower is associated with the planetMars.^[8]

According toA. E. Waite's 1910 bookThe Pictorial Key to the Tarot,^[9]the Tower card is associated with:

16. THE TOWER.-- Misery, distress, indigence, adversity, calamity, disgrace, deception, ruin. It is a card in particular of unforeseen catastrophe.Reversed:Negligence, absence, distribution, carelessness, distraction, apathy, nullity, vanity.

Alternate decks

TheFlemish Deckby Vandenborre (c. 1750–1760) renames itLa Foudre( "The Thunderbolt" ). It shows a frightened shepherd cowering under a burning tree split by a bolt of lightning while sheep graze at its base.
InAnne Ricetarot deck the Tower card depictsArmandin the Vampire Chronicles.
In the Golden Dawn system it corresponds to the Hebrew letterPeh,and in the French system it corresponds toAyin.^[6]

References

^Bill Butler (1975).Dictionary of the Tarot.Schocken.ISBN 0-8052-0559-4.
^"The Hidden Aspects of Tarot Pairings".HeavenlyPredictions.com. 21 June 2014.Retrieved21 June2014.
^^a ^bPaul Huson(2004).Mystical Origins of the Tarot: From Ancient Roots to Modern Usage.Destiny.ISBN 978-0-89281-190-8.
^Robert Place (2005).The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination.TarcherPerigee. p.207.ISBN 1-58542-349-1.
^"The Tower".TarotCardMeanings.net. 12 June 2015.Retrieved12 June2015.
^^a ^bJohn Michael Greer (2003).The New Encyclopedia of the Occult.Saint Paul, Minnesota:Llewellyn Publications. p. 489.ISBN 1-56718-336-0.
^Eden Gray (1970).Complete Guide to the Tarot.New York, NY: Crown Publishers.^{[ISBN missing]}
^McCann, David (March 1998). Houlding, Deborah (ed.)."Mercury in Myth & Occult Philosophy".The Traditional Astrologer(16). Nottingham, UK: Ascella.
^Waite, Arthur Edward, 1857-1942. (2005).The pictorial key to the tarot.Mineola, NY: Dover Publications.ISBN 0-486-44255-1.OCLC 57549699.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

External links

Media related toTower (Major Arcana)at Wikimedia Commons

[1] Bill Butler (1975).Dictionary of the Tarot.Schocken.ISBN 0-8052-0559-4.

[2] "The Hidden Aspects of Tarot Pairings".HeavenlyPredictions.com. 21 June 2014.Retrieved21 June2014.

[Huson-3] Paul Huson(2004).Mystical Origins of the Tarot: From Ancient Roots to Modern Usage.Destiny.ISBN 978-0-89281-190-8.

[4] Robert Place (2005).The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination.TarcherPerigee. p.207.ISBN 1-58542-349-1.

[5] "The Tower".TarotCardMeanings.net. 12 June 2015.Retrieved12 June2015.

[Greer_p.489-6] John Michael Greer (2003).The New Encyclopedia of the Occult.Saint Paul, Minnesota:Llewellyn Publications. p. 489.ISBN 1-56718-336-0.

[7] Eden Gray (1970).Complete Guide to the Tarot.New York, NY: Crown Publishers.^{[ISBN missing]}

[8] McCann, David (March 1998). Houlding, Deborah (ed.)."Mercury in Myth & Occult Philosophy".The Traditional Astrologer(16). Nottingham, UK: Ascella.

[9] Waite, Arthur Edward, 1857-1942. (2005).The pictorial key to the tarot.Mineola, NY: Dover Publications.ISBN 0-486-44255-1.OCLC 57549699.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

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History

Symbolism

Alternate decks

References

Further reading

External links