The numbering of the Sibillas is related to lottery numbering, choosing lottery numbers but I'm not sure how it works (though I know there is an ebook about this just published).
Yes, I think that most of the numbers on the cards are for the lottery, but I
think that some of the decks have additional straight numbering through the suits going on, even though that seems to be the exception rather than the norm. I thought that's what Lady Freya meant when she said that they were indeed numbered in the upper right corners. (For examples of what I'm talking about, check out early Hearts cards on
that italian site and you can see that on one of the decks the A
is #1, 2
is #2, etc. The Spades are in the 40s. Sometimes that particular deck isn't shown for a certain card, but when you see it shown the numbers appear to go in order.)
The LWB for the Everyday Sibilla elucidates the playing card references. There is a logical grouping of the cards by theme which I have noted down somewhere, but it's late here and I have to get up early so no time now.
I love the Sibillas. More and more. I wonder how long it will be before we start getting innundated with thematic Sibillas too? There are a few here and there, but the Sibilla still feels like the unloved cartomantic cousin of the Lenormand. It still feels like something you can learn undistracted in a vacuum if you want.
But hurry! It won't last long!
I have the Every Day Oracle on its way to me, so I'll be sure to read the LWB. I'd love to read more about the thematic grouping, other than noting that the spades are mostly negative, the hearts positive & love-oriented, etc.
I love the Sibillas, too. And the Gypsy Cards and the Art Deco cards. They do seem like the unloved cousins. They're refreshingly straightforward in a different way than the Lenormand, which still requires cypher translation. These decks are kind of a neat mix of card combining, recognizable scenes, and strong keyword themes, which I like. I was at a friend's this past weekend and she and her husband unexpectedly asked me to bring some tarot decks. I went overboard and brought along many, including some Sibillas, the Gypsy cards, and some Lenormands. My friend loved the Gypsy cards best because unlike the tarot, which she thinks is complicated and requires study, or the Lenormands, which are even more mystifying to her, those cards had titles and topics (in English no less) that she could identify with immediately, like Love, Money, or Jealousy. If you know the translations of the Sibillas, they're the same way.
There is something wonderful about the lack of popularity or info about them, isn't there? One could do what you've so amusingly said: lock yourself in a room and get to know the cards in a vacuum, emerging as a functional reader (although minus the teacher probably.)
Ah, yes, I'm sure you're right that after people wear themselves out on Lenormand we can probably expect an explosion of thematic Sibillas. I had no idea about the Egyptian Oracle, either! Huh.
...sounds like it's already started!
ETA: Forgot to mention that I found and attached that sheet I'd posted once w/ the translated words for the i Misteri della Sibilla deck.