No. 22

Tarot 22

Il Mondo, The World: In early hand painted tarot decks the image on the World card was different from what is regularly shown on it today, where a woman is in the centre, and there is another human in a large wreath [Agrell].

In one old deck, the Visconti Sforza deck, a circle encapsules a city that is surrounded by the sea. The circle is raised high by two infant boys, two putti. The idea of a city that is furnished with turrets and battlements in the style of a castle, persists and endures in other decks of the era too. Further,

In D'Este cards the world is depicted slightly differently with a putti sitting on top of the circled city, while more commonly . . . a regal looking woman holding a sceptre and orb, stands on top of the circular window-like motif which opens onto the world. This type of portrayal continued into several early printed decks, and we find it as late as the 17th centure in the tarot de Paris, where a naked figure holds a large drape behind him while standing on top of the globe. [Allen 163-64]

In the four corners of younger decks, a young nude is in the centre, draped modestly with a long, flowing scarf. In some decks the nude is holding wands or staffs in both hands. The beings in the corners are a winged human or angel, an eagle or hawk, a bull, and a lion, as with the symbols of the four evangelists. In some decks these four beings have wings. [Hollander]

Suggestions

The idea behind the picture is to represent much completion. [Huson; Sharman-Burke]

Alignment

In the present spiralling approach, The Circled City (or The World) and The Hermit share the tenth life field (area). The mental link? What the travelling monk secretly dreams of, might well be more of human relationships, and settle down.