Papus 10 of Coins?

Abrac

Hey all-

I posted this in Tarot Decks but didn't get a response. I thought it might be more appropriate here as it pertains more specifically to the Western magical tradition.

As I was looking through the Papus Tarot by US Games, I noticed the letters on the wheel are different from the drawing in Papus' book Le Tarot Divinatoire; the 'R' at the bottom has become 'E,' making TAEO instead of TARO and EOTA instead of ROTA. I don't have the LWB and have I ever seen this before. Can anyone shed some light?

10 of Coins
 

Abrac

When I first saw this I believed it was ROTA with E replacing R, but after thinking about it I'm wondering if the letters are supposed to be Greek. That would put Alpha in the East, Omega in the West, Tau in the North and Epsilon in the South. The only one that doesn't make sense to me is again the E, Epsilon. I did some digging but couldn't find anything on its symbolic significance, if any. If anyone know where I might find something that would illuminate this problem it would be greatly appreciated. :)
 

Abrac

Hmmm...I found this in A Dictionary of Symbols by J.E. Cirlot, pages 63 & 64:

"The Greeks, the Cabbalsists and the Gnostics founded a great deal of their philosphy upon the theory of correspondences. Porphyry mentions the following between the Greek vowels and the planets: alpha corresponding to the moon; epsilon to Mercury; eta to Venus; iota to the sun; omicron to Mars; upsilon to Jupiter; and omega to Saturn."

I will have to do more research, but it does appear there is at least some basis for my theory. As the "messenger of the Gods," Mercury would fit pretty well in the South (the Underworld).
 

elvenstar

If the letters are Greek the O is Omicron and not Omega. So you'd have Moon Mercury and Mars, but where then does then the T fit in?

Sorry I can't be of any actual help. :)
 

Abrac

elvenstar said:
If the letters are Greek the O is Omicron and not Omega.
Click to expand...
Yes, that's a good point. It's a mystery that may never be solved, short of input from the artist himself.
 

Abrac

Wow, speaking of the artist. As soon as I wrote that last post it hit me. I do believe the artist is French and this deck was first published in 1981 in Paris before US Games got their hands on it, so there is probably a French connection. US Games made the titles English but I have no doubt the letters on the image itself are original. So, now the only problem is, what does it mean? :laugh:
 

Abrac

I was reading in the Encyclopedia of Tarot Vol.3 about the artist, Olivier Stephane. He is indeed French and has created quite a few decks, many of them based on the drawings in Papus' book Le Tarot Divinatoire. I doubt the 'E' is a mistake. He has taken a lot of 'artistic license' in this deck and I believe that is what he has done with the 10 of Coins. What his intention was I still have no clue, but I'm putting it to rest. If the answer ever does come to light it will have to come on its own.
 

Abrac

Thought I would revisit this old thread and see if anyone has any fresh ideas. It has been seven months and still no clue whatsoever.
 

shaveling

I just checked the LWB. It casts no light on the matter.
 

Abrac

Thanks for checking shaveling. Since I don't have the booklet I did wonder if it had anything so it's appreciated.
 
Help with my first deck: Celtic Dragon Tarot Cards with Phoenix imagery