Thoth tarot deck

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Cover of the Thoth Tarot deck, designed by Aleister Crowley and painted by Lady Frieda Harris. The cover is similar to the illustration of the Two of Disks.

The Thoth Tarot /təʊt 'tær.əʊ/ is a divinatory tarot deck painted by Lady Frieda Harris according to instructions from Aleister Crowley. Crowley referred to this deck as The Book of Thoth, and also wrote a book of that title intended for use with the deck.

[edit] Background

Crowley originally intended the Thoth deck to be a six-month project aimed at updating the traditional pictorial symbolism, perhaps best demonstrated by the Rider-Waite-Smith deck; however, it was to span five years, between 1938 and 1943, as the scope of the project grew ever wider. Crowley and Harris were meticulous in their work; Harris painted some cards as many as eight times. The current printing of the deck actually includes two alternate illustrations of The Magus, each making use of markedly different style and symbols. Unfortunately, neither Harris nor Crowley lived to see the deck published; a follower of Crowley undertook the work of publication in 1969. This initial printing was of markedly inferior quality, and in 1977 Harris' paintings were rephotographed for a second edition; the current edition is based on a further update that took place in 1986.

[edit] Symbolism

The illustrations of the Thoth deck are rich in symbolism, based upon Crowley's stated desire to incorporate symbols from many disparate disciplines, including science and philosophy, as well as to draw on his extensive knowledge of various occult system (as described in detail in his Book of Thoth). For example, The Hanged Man and The Moon draw from Egyptian mythology, and the Princess of Disks holds a disk bearing the Taijitu. The pip cards in the four suits (Wands, Cups, Swords, and Disks) depict their objects in carefully-crafted positions; for example, the Four of Swords (which Crowley named "truce") shows four swords with their points toward the center of an imaginary square, suggesting a possibly tense peace. The card illustrations are uniformly stark and vividly illustrated throughout.

[edit] Differences from Rider Waite Tarot

[edit] Order and names of trumps

Crowley renamed several of the trumps, and also re-arranged the astrological and Hebrew alphabet correspondences of some cards, in accordance with his earlier book, Liber AL vel Legis:

All these old letters of my Book are aright; but צ is not the Star. (AL I:57)

[edit] The minor arcana

Each of the minor arcana pips (1-10 of each suit), has been given a title, other then the four Aces. Crowley titled them based on his intended symbolism. This symbolism, does not always follow the more popular Rider-Waite tarot deck.

[edit] Names of court cards

Crowley altered the names of the all the court cards apart from the Queen in the Thoth deck, which can cause some confusion for people used to the more common Ride-Waite deck and its derivatives. The typical^[1] corresponding names are as follows:

[edit] Titles and attributions of the Wands Suit

[edit] Titles and attributions of the Cups Suit

[edit] Titles and attributions of the Swords Suit

[edit] Titles and attributions of the Disks Suit

[edit] References

1. ^ Corresponding Court Cards Between Decks for alternative

• Duquette, Lon Milo (2003). Understanding Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot. Weiser Books.
• Wasserman, James. Instructions for Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot Deck, included in the U.S. Games Systems publication of the deck.

[edit] External links

• Pictures of all 78 cards
• Corresponding Court Cards Between Decks
• Thoth Tarot Online Reading