The Rider–Waite Tarot is a widely popular deck for tarot card reading.[1][2] It is also known as the Waite–Smith,[3]Rider–Waite–Smith,[4][5] or Rider Tarot.[4] Based on the instructions of academic and mystic A. E. Waite and illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith, both members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the cards were originally published by the Rider Company in 1909. The deck has been published in numerous editions and inspired a wide array of variants and imitations.[6][7] It is estimated that more than 100 million copies of the deck exist in more than 20 countries.[8]
While the images are simple, the details and backgrounds feature abundant symbolism. Some imagery remains similar to that found in earlier decks, but overall the Waite–Smith card designs are substantially different from their predecessors. Christian imagery was removed from some cards, and added to others. For example, the "Papess" became the "High Priestess" and no longer features a Papal tiara, while the "Lovers" card, previously depicting a medieval scene of a clothed man and woman receiving a blessing from a noble or cleric was changed to a depiction of the naked Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and the ace of cups featuring a dove carrying Sacramental bread. The Minor Arcana is illustrated with allegorical scenes by Smith, where earlier decks (with a few rare exceptions) had simple designs for the Minor Arcana.[9]
The symbols and imagery used in the deck were influenced by the 19th-century magician and occultist Eliphas Levi,[10][11] as well as by the teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.[12] In order to accommodate the astrological correspondences taught by the Golden Dawn, Waite introduced several innovations to the deck. He switched the order of the Strength and Justice cards so that Strength corresponded with Leo and Justice corresponded with Libra.[13][14] He also based the Lovers card on Italian tarot decks, which have two persons and an angel, to reinforce its correspondence with Gemini.[13]
The cards were first published during December 1909, by the publisher William Rider & Son of London.[9][13] The first printing was extremely limited and featured card backs with a roses and lilies pattern. A much larger printing was done during March of 1910, featuring better quality card stock and a "cracked mud" card back design. This edition, often referred to as the "A" deck, was published from 1910 to 1920. Rider continued publishing the deck in various editions until 1939, then again from 1971 to 1977.
All of the Rider editions up to 1939 were available with a small guide written by A. E. Waite providing an overview of the traditions and history of the cards, texts about interpretations, and extensive descriptions of their symbols. The first version of this guide was published during 1909 and was titled The Key to the Tarot. A year later, a revised version, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, was issued that featured black-and-white plates of all seventy-eight of Smith's illustrations.
Copyright status
The original version of the Rider–Waite Tarot is in the public domain in all countries that have a copyright term of 70 years or fewer after the death of the last co-author. This includes the United Kingdom, where the deck was originally published.[15]
In the United States, the deck became part of the public domain in 1966 (publication + 28 years + renewed 28 years), and thus has been available for use by American artists for numerous different media projects. U.S. Games Systems has a copyright claim on their updated version of the deck published in 1971, but this only applies to new material added to the pre-existing work (e.g. designs on the card backs and the box).
References
^Giles, Cynthia (1994). The Tarot: History, Mystery, and Lore. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 46. ISBN0671891014.
^Visions and Prophecies. Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books. 1988. p. 142.
^Katz, Marcus; Goodwin, Tali (2015). Secrets of the Waite-Smith Tarot. Llewellyn Publications. ISBN0738741191.
^ abMichelsen, Teresa (2005). The Complete Tarot Reader: Everything You Need to Know from Start to Finish. Llewellyn Publications. p. 105. ISBN0738704342.
^Graham, Sasha (2018). Llewellyn's Complete Book of the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot. Llewellyn Publications. ISBN073875319X.
^Kaplan, Stuart R. (2018). Pamela Colman Smith: The Untold Story. Stamford, Connecticut: U.S. Game Systems. p. 371. ISBN9781572819122.
^Dean, Liz (2015). The Ultimate Guide to Tarot: A Beginner's Guide to the Cards, Spreads, and Revealing the Mystery of the Tarot. Beverly, Massachusetts: Fair Winds Press. p. 9. ISBN1592336574.
^Ray, Sharmistha (23 March 2019). "Reviving a Forgotten Artist of the Occult". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 14 March 2021.
^ abKaplan, Stuart R. (2018). Pamela Colman Smith: The Untold Story. Stamford, Connecticut: U.S. Game Systems. pp. 74–76. ISBN9781572819122.
^Place, Robert M. (14 May 2015). "Levi's Chariot and Smith's Chariot Versus Waite's Chariot". Tarot & Divination Decks with Robert M Place. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
^Place, Robert M. (7 August 2015). "Smith, Waite, Levi, and the Devil". Tarot & Divination Decks with Robert M Place. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
^Decker, Ronald; Dummett, Michael (2019). A History of the Occult Tarot. London: Duckworth. pp. 139–141. ISBN9780715645727.
^ abcJensen, K. Frank (2005). "The Early Waite–Smith Tarot Editions". The Playing-Card. The International Playing Card Society. 34 (1): 26–50.
^Decker, Ronald; Dummett, Michael (2019). A History of the Occult Tarot. London: Duckworth. pp. 82–84. ISBN9780715645727.
^"Ownership of copyright works - Detailed guidance". GOV.UK. 2014-08-19. Retrieved 2016-09-28.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rider-Waite tarot deck.
Learning materials related to A Psychological Interpretation of the Tarot at Wikiversity
January 07, 2023
rider, waite, tarot, widely, popular, deck, tarot, card, reading, also, known, waite, smith, rider, waite, smith, rider, tarot, based, instructions, academic, mystic, waite, illustrated, pamela, colman, smith, both, members, hermetic, order, golden, dawn, card. The Rider Waite Tarot is a widely popular deck for tarot card reading 1 2 It is also known as the Waite Smith 3 Rider Waite Smith 4 5 or Rider Tarot 4 Based on the instructions of academic and mystic A E Waite and illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith both members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn the cards were originally published by the Rider Company in 1909 The deck has been published in numerous editions and inspired a wide array of variants and imitations 6 7 It is estimated that more than 100 million copies of the deck exist in more than 20 countries 8 A E Waite and Pamela Colman Smith Contents 1 Overview 2 Major Arcana 3 Minor Arcana 3 1 Wands 3 2 Cups 3 3 Swords 3 4 Pentacles 4 Publication 5 Copyright status 6 References 7 External linksOverview EditWhile the images are simple the details and backgrounds feature abundant symbolism Some imagery remains similar to that found in earlier decks but overall the Waite Smith card designs are substantially different from their predecessors Christian imagery was removed from some cards and added to others For example the Papess became the High Priestess and no longer features a Papal tiara while the Lovers card previously depicting a medieval scene of a clothed man and woman receiving a blessing from a noble or cleric was changed to a depiction of the naked Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and the ace of cups featuring a dove carrying Sacramental bread The Minor Arcana is illustrated with allegorical scenes by Smith where earlier decks with a few rare exceptions had simple designs for the Minor Arcana 9 The symbols and imagery used in the deck were influenced by the 19th century magician and occultist Eliphas Levi 10 11 as well as by the teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn 12 In order to accommodate the astrological correspondences taught by the Golden Dawn Waite introduced several innovations to the deck He switched the order of the Strength and Justice cards so that Strength corresponded with Leo and Justice corresponded with Libra 13 14 He also based the Lovers card on Italian tarot decks which have two persons and an angel to reinforce its correspondence with Gemini 13 Major Arcana Edit 0 The Fool I The Magician II The High Priestess III The Empress IV The Emperor V The Hierophant VI The Lovers VII The Chariot VIII Strength IX The Hermit X Wheel of Fortune XI Justice XII The Hanged Man XIII Death XIV Temperance XV The Devil XVI The Tower XVII The Star XVIII The Moon XIX The Sun XX Judgement XXI The WorldMinor Arcana EditWands Edit Ace of Wands Two of Wands Three of Wands Four of Wands Five of Wands Six of Wands Seven of Wands Eight of Wands Nine of Wands Ten of Wands Page of Wands Knight of Wands Queen of Wands King of WandsCups Edit Ace of Cups Two of Cups Three of Cups Four of Cups Five of Cups Six of Cups Seven of Cups Eight of Cups Nine of Cups Ten of Cups Page of Cups Knight of Cups Queen of Cups King of CupsSwords Edit Ace of Swords Two of Swords Three of Swords Four of Swords Five of Swords Six of Swords Seven of Swords Eight of Swords Nine of Swords Ten of Swords Page of Swords Knight of Swords Queen of Swords King of SwordsPentacles Edit Ace of Pentacles Two of Pentacles Three of Pentacles Four of Pentacles Five of Pentacles Six of Pentacles Seven of Pentacles Eight of Pentacles Nine of Pentacles Ten of Pentacles Page of Pentacles Knight of Pentacles Queen of Pentacles King of PentaclesPublication EditThe cards were first published during December 1909 by the publisher William Rider amp Son of London 9 13 The first printing was extremely limited and featured card backs with a roses and lilies pattern A much larger printing was done during March of 1910 featuring better quality card stock and a cracked mud card back design This edition often referred to as the A deck was published from 1910 to 1920 Rider continued publishing the deck in various editions until 1939 then again from 1971 to 1977 All of the Rider editions up to 1939 were available with a small guide written by A E Waite providing an overview of the traditions and history of the cards texts about interpretations and extensive descriptions of their symbols The first version of this guide was published during 1909 and was titled The Key to the Tarot A year later a revised version The Pictorial Key to the Tarot was issued that featured black and white plates of all seventy eight of Smith s illustrations Copyright status EditThe original version of the Rider Waite Tarot is in the public domain in all countries that have a copyright term of 70 years or fewer after the death of the last co author This includes the United Kingdom where the deck was originally published 15 In the United States the deck became part of the public domain in 1966 publication 28 years renewed 28 years and thus has been available for use by American artists for numerous different media projects U S Games Systems has a copyright claim on their updated version of the deck published in 1971 but this only applies to new material added to the pre existing work e g designs on the card backs and the box References Edit Giles Cynthia 1994 The Tarot History Mystery and Lore New York Simon amp Schuster p 46 ISBN 0671891014 Visions and Prophecies Alexandria Virginia Time Life Books 1988 p 142 Katz Marcus Goodwin Tali 2015 Secrets of the Waite Smith Tarot Llewellyn Publications ISBN 0738741191 a b Michelsen Teresa 2005 The Complete Tarot Reader Everything You Need to Know from Start to Finish Llewellyn Publications p 105 ISBN 0738704342 Graham Sasha 2018 Llewellyn s Complete Book of the Rider Waite Smith Tarot Llewellyn Publications ISBN 073875319X Kaplan Stuart R 2018 Pamela Colman Smith The Untold Story Stamford Connecticut U S Game Systems p 371 ISBN 9781572819122 Dean Liz 2015 The Ultimate Guide to Tarot A Beginner s Guide to the Cards Spreads and Revealing the Mystery of the Tarot Beverly Massachusetts Fair Winds Press p 9 ISBN 1592336574 Ray Sharmistha 23 March 2019 Reviving a Forgotten Artist of the Occult Hyperallergic Retrieved 14 March 2021 a b Kaplan Stuart R 2018 Pamela Colman Smith The Untold Story Stamford Connecticut U S Game Systems pp 74 76 ISBN 9781572819122 Place Robert M 14 May 2015 Levi s Chariot and Smith s Chariot Versus Waite s Chariot Tarot amp Divination Decks with Robert M Place Retrieved 21 August 2020 Place Robert M 7 August 2015 Smith Waite Levi and the Devil Tarot amp Divination Decks with Robert M Place Retrieved 21 August 2020 Decker Ronald Dummett Michael 2019 A History of the Occult Tarot London Duckworth pp 139 141 ISBN 9780715645727 a b c Jensen K Frank 2005 The Early Waite Smith Tarot Editions The Playing Card The International Playing Card Society 34 1 26 50 Decker Ronald Dummett Michael 2019 A History of the Occult Tarot London Duckworth pp 82 84 ISBN 9780715645727 Ownership of copyright works Detailed guidance GOV UK 2014 08 19 Retrieved 2016 09 28 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rider Waite tarot deck Learning materials related to A Psychological Interpretation of the Tarot at Wikiversity Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rider Waite Tarot amp oldid 1130268024, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
