Why are there two Merlins in the Arthurian Tarot deck

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 10 Feb 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

draco	10 Feb 2002
I was hoping that somebody could tell me why there are two Merlins in the Arthurian Tarot deck the firts one is The Magician/Merlin. And the other card is the Five of Spears/Pursuit of Igraine could somebody please tell me why.

divinerguy	10 Feb 2002
While I'm sure there's some esoteric reason for the extra card, one reason is more mundane. Tarot cards are typically printed on a sheet which holds 80 cards. As most decks have 78 cards, they've got two extra cards to fill. The first card is usually filled with a copyright statement. The second extra card sometimes has deck creators and publishers looking for filler material. The Crowley has an extra 2 Magi cards. The Robin Wood has a blank card. The Motherpeace has author biographies. Hope this answers as least part of your question. Gary

Scorpion	10 Feb 2002
Hi, Draco! As you say, Merlin does appear in both the Major and Minor Arcana in this particular deck. I have had a look and as far as I can tell, it's the only example: Morgan Le Fay and Nimue appear on their own cards and again on the Judgement card, and Bedivere on the 2 of Spears and again as the Knight of Spears, but I can't see any other character who appears on both types of card, although they frequently appear in the accompanying stories. The only thing I can think of is that Merlin is essential to this story - in fact to the whole story of Arthur: without his intervention at this point, Arthur would not have been born. Uther realised that he needed a new approach and turned to Merlin. Perhaps that is the message of the 5 Spears - like all the fives it is a card of conflict and perhaps Merlin is present to remind the reader a whole new approach may provide the answer? Or that it can only be resolved by outside forces?

Jewel	11 Feb 2002
Hi Draco, I just wanted to expand a little on the appearance of Merlin in the 5 of wands "pursuit of Igraine" and why that might be appropriate. Granted I am writing this using information from the novel "The Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley which I am sure is not what the author of this used ;) In the "Mysts of Avalon" (as in all Arthurian tales I believe) Igraine was married to Morgan LeFay's dad prior to conceiving Arthur. In this particular book, while her husband is away at war Merlin and Vivienne (the Lady of the Lake and sister to Igraine) come to visit her and tell her that she will conceive the "King" that will unite the empire (Christians and Pagans) but not by her current husband. Although she had no love lost for her husband, she was a proper lady thus this really presented a moral dilema for her. Thus a conflict of the spirit or one interpretation of the 5 of wands. Hope this helps. Love & Light,

Rhiannon	27 Feb 2002
Hi Draco, First off I'd like to say that I recently purchased this deck (separate from the book) and I absolutely love it. I find that for a themed deck, it's very easy to read with, as the cards are similar in symbolism to the standard Rider-Waite. I recommend it to anyone who loves Arthurian legend, even if they are a beginner. Having said that, I will try to answer your question about the 2 Merlins: Merlin represents the Magician in the Major Arcana and the card is all about HIM. The Majors focus on INDIVIDUALS that are a part of the story. In the Minors the cards represent SITUATIONS as opposed to individuals and the situation of the "pursuit of Igraine" was appropriate to the 5 of Spears card. I think you will also find that while there is one card of Arthur in the Majors (Emperor), he also is featured on other cards as well. Ditto for some of the other characters. Hope this helps you and anyone else who may be having difficulties with this deck. Rhiannon :)

The Why are there two Merlins in the Arthurian Tarot deck thread was originally posted on 10 Feb 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.