..about the Tower and its construction.

beanu

DoctorArcanus said:
So I would like to know when and where did the tower become a tower?

Marco

Can't tell you when or where, but my theory is that it refers to the Tower of Alchemy.

http://www.alchemywebsite.com/images/amcl115.jpg

Morienus from Maier Symbola aurea mensae, Franckfurt, 1617.

That date may me relevant, if you are lucky.

B
 

beanu

Just to state the obvious, see as no one else has actually said it...
Towers are usually military defensive positions, and contain archers (among other things). This arrangement puts the archers in a strong position of
dominance over attackers.

END OBVIOUS BIT - BACK to SPECULATION

They may seem almost invincible,
but don't stand a chance against the power of lighting as instrument of God's wrath.

Hence, this ties in with the expulsion from the garden of eden.

RWS (sorry, but its relevant here) has both the Devil and the Tower as having black backgrounds.
The implication is that if you fall under the Devil's sway, and eat of the forbidden fruit, God will punish you.

The imagery may have changed from expulsion to tower soon after the actual physical strike of the tower, as artists may have felt that the tower imagery was more relevant due to its connection with the recent memory of the event.
 

Bernice

Originally Posted by Rosanne:
As to the other Tower cards especially the Charles VI / Gringonneur Tower- I have just been reading Umberto Eco's book On Ugliness and it brings up an interesting point. If you look at the Griggoneur Tower you see it almost looks like the skin of stone is been shed and there is another Tower underneath. Like many of the depictions of the time the true nature of the person- building-landscape is revealed when Virtue, for example is paramount.

Posted by Elven:
I was thinking this is because a lot of the old Towers were built in leaf formations especially when repairs happened, so this leafing would peel - and when your Tower starts to peel - you're in big trouble.

Wonderful! Great bit of sleuthing. I actually prefer the Charles VI Tower image. Many thanks to you both ...

Bee :)

EDIT (later): Just noticed that the 'inner' tower is cracked as well....
 

Cartomancer

The Tower in the Summer Triangle?

I think the subject is interesting. A first step would be to collect samples of different Tower cards.

One of the most fascinating things, is that possibly the Tower originally was not a Tower.

See for instance the Charles VI / Gringonneur Tower. As far as I know, this is the most ancient existing Tower card (Florence, second half of the XV Century), and to me it looks more like the gates of a town than a tower.
In ancient times, that card was not known as the Tower or la Torre. In the Sermone de Ludo cum Aliis (1450/1480) it is called "Sagitta" (i.e. arrow, but could also mean lightning). In the Merlin Cocai sonnet (1527) it is called Foco (fire).
Moreover, the Minchiate "tower" seems to represent the Expulsion from the Garden of Eden (I don't know how ancient this version of the minchiate image is).

So I would like to know when and where did the tower become a tower?

Sagittae (Arrow) is an ancient constellation in the center of the Summer Triangle. The stars of Vega (Lyra), Deneb (Cygnus) and Altair (Aquila) form a triangle with a tall top or apex, which Sagitta is near.

Here is a possible rendition of the Charles VI Tower card in the stars of the Summer Triangle:
http://piecework.deviantart.com/art/Tower-Summer-Triangle-Sagittae-480171390

Link to Sagitta on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagitta

This overlay of stars over this Tower card may not be correct or it may need adjusting, but perhaps earlier versions of the card will provide more clues. Is the constellation Sagitta involved in the Tower card? A UFO appears above the tower firing on it or something.

- Cartomancer (Lance Carter)
 

Cartomancer

Sagitta as the Tower?

Sagittae (Arrow) is an ancient constellation in the center of the Summer Triangle. The stars of Vega (Lyra), Deneb (Cygnus) and Altair (Aquila) form a triangle with a tall top or apex, which Sagitta is near.

The brighter stars of this ancient constellation line up and the center line of the Tower cards can be seen

The following links present views of just the Tower card over the constellation Sagitta.
The constellation Sagitta with an overlay of Tower cards:

The constellation Sagitta with the Cary Sheet Tower card:
http://piecework.deviantart.com/art/Cary-Tower-On-Sagitta-480181171

The constellation Sagitta with the Charles VI Tower card:
http://piecework.deviantart.com/art/CHARLES-VI-Tower-over-Sagitta-480181270

An arrow is a weapon that sometimes had fire on the tips, connecting it with fire in the Tower card.
It may have been known as a missile (weapon) in Latin and Low Latin.

It was also known as Obelus, possibly indicating an Obelisk.
(Does the Tower card remind you of an Obelisk?)
Sagitta was also known as a dart , pole, wand, and falling wand.
(from Outer Space p. 235)

This is a possible reconstruction of the Cary Tower card by mirroring the right side and adding the stars of Sagitta:
http://piecework.deviantart.com/art/Cary-Tower-Reconstruct-480184034

- Cartomancer (Lance Carter)