Book on Symbols

I've been looking around for a book which discussed the symbols which are used in the Tarot and symbols and symbolism in general. But I had a somewhat stringent requirement... it had to be a book which made it easy to find a write up on a symbol when I was looking for it. In other words, I wanted it in an encyclopedia type style. I wanted to be able to look at a Tarot card, say to myself "gee... I wonder what meanings a falcon might have as a symbol", then go look that up. Well... after months of intense searching... okay, after months of kind of looking around... I finally found it!

"All About Symbols" by Andrew T. Cummings. ISBN 965494139-2 cover price; $16.95 (U.S.)

This turned out to be exactly the book I have been looking for! The articles on various symbols are grouped into 8 chapters;

"Graphic and Geometrical Symbols" - including for example; Ankh, Egg/Cosmic Egg, Medicine Wheel, Spiral, etc...

"Symbols in the Animal Kingdom" - Crab, Falcon, Lion, Skunk , Toad ...

"Mythological Animals, Legendary Creatures and Monsters" - Basilisk/coctris, Dragon, Kobold, Pegasus, Sphinx ...

"Symbolism in Human Images" - Androgyne/Hermaphrodite, Cyclops, Father, Mother ...

"Symbols in the Plant Kingdom" - Aloe, Corn, Lily, Rose, Thorn, Wheat ....

"Symbolism in Objects" - Arrow, Book, Dagger, Hammer, Key, Mirror, Sword ...

"Parts of the body" - Beard, Heart, Skull, Teeth, Tongue ...

"Symbols of Landscape and Nature" - Cloud, Garden, Mountain, Shadow, Snow, Valley ....

As an example, here is the first paragraph of the article on "Falcon" (which I mentioned above);

from "All About Symbols" by Andrew T. Cummings
The falcon participates in a large part of the lunar symbolism of the eagle that it sometimes replaces. The falcon is the symbol of victory, ambition, flying over all plains, learning of swiftness and agility, controlling speed and movement, learning the tricks of life and understanding magic. The falcon helps to cure the soul and escorts the soul back to the world of the souls. It is a symbol of liberty and freedom and therefore symbolizes hope to all those who are in bondage whether moral, emotional or spiritual.

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This looks like it is an excellent book to help one understand some of the more difficult to understand symbols seen in the Tarot. However, these articles are primarily about these things as cultural symbols. If one is looking for how these things relate in dreams, one should look for a different book. I'm not certain how much help this book would be for interpreting dreams. For understanding why a particular symbol is used in a particular cultural context though, this might be the book for you.

Trogen, thanks for sharing that! I have been looking for a book, I don't remember the name, and I only remember the last name of the author, it was O'Neill. I saw it once in a Barnes and Noble in the Chicago area, and I remember thinking how it was just what I was looking for, but I didn't buy it. I convinced myself I had enough books on Tarot, and didn't need it. I sure wish I had bought it.

Glad you found yours! Maybe I should get this one instead!

Mimi

'An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols' by J.C Cooper is very good.
each entry lists the symbolism from many different cultures... European, Christian, Chinese, Greek, Native American, etc.
and it's interesting to see which associations agree and which are completely opposed.

another gooder (if you can find it) is 'A Dictionary of Symbols' by J.E Cirlot. this one might be O/P however.

Mimers, am I right in understanding that you came across a copy of Tarot Symbolism and decided to forgo it!?!

Maybe I've misread...
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Great to see what you've been after, Trogon. It's always such a pleasure to find a highly useful volume!

After checking on the tiles Alobar provided, I now find there is a plethora of books which would probably have filled my needs... oy! I wonder how many of them I can afford...

jmd, I was thinking the same thing! I'd been watching for a copy of "Tarot Symbolism" for a while. Of course I haven't been able to latch on to one yet. Still... it might show up at the used-book store...

[edited to add:]

I checked at Amazon.Com, and found that "A Dictionary of Symbols" by Juan Eduardo Cirlot is available. I also noticed that, if one scrolls down a little, they're offering a special price on this book along with An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols" by J. C. Cooper - both books for $27.24 (USD).

jmd said:

Mimers, am I right in understanding that you came across a copy of Tarot Symbolism and decided to forgo it!?!

Maybe I've misread...
_____
Great to see what you've been after, Trogon. It's always such a pleasure to find a highly useful volume!

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ummm, gulp, I was new to Tarot at the time. I had no idea what I was missing.

I actually don't even remember the title. I believe it had a red cover. The only reason I remembered the author is O'Neill was that it is the same last name of my favorite Yankee player, Tom O'Neill (he's retired now )

OK, I just checked the review that you gave me the link for. That is definitely the book I saw. What I don't understand is, if it is out of print, how did I come accross it at a Barnes and Noble, not even a year ago?? It must have been sitting on the shelf for a long time!

I guess I should call my friend in Chicago and have him go pick it up for me.

Mimi

Mimers said:

OK, I just checked the review that you gave me the link for. That is definitely the book I saw. What I don't understand is, if it is out of print, how did I come accross it at a Barnes and Noble, not even a year ago?? It must have been sitting on the shelf for a long time!

I guess I should call my friend in Chicago and have him go pick it up for me.

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If it was still there, I would definitely have him pick it up.... to paraphrase the old Latin saying; carpe bookum...

Symbol Books

Hi All,

I just thought i would mention a couple of symbol books which i have and i find very informative......

The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols, by Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant, ISBN 0-14-051254-3,
This book is very thick! but has a wealth of information about all types of symbols, including tarot symbols and once you manage to navigate it, it is quite detailed!

The second book i have is one i use for my deck, the Ancient Egyptian Tarot, this book is titled.....
An Illustrated Dictionary of The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, by Manfred Lurker. ISBN 0-500-27253-0

Anyone who uses an Egyptian deck would find this book most useful, it certainly as helped me.
Sometimes i think working out the meanings of tarot symbols can make all the difference to understanding what the cards are trying to say.
I will certainly look up the symbol books that Trogon has suggested, as it`s nice to add these to my book collection.
Thankyou for the opportunity to spend more money!!! *LOL*

Mia

I picked up Dictionary of Symbols by Jack Tresidder awhile back, and it seems very good. Not specifically about tarot, though.

Baby Owl