Rider Waite symbology questions re: Fool

Hello fellow tarot users,

Just wondering if your could help me? Was wondering :

1) why the Fools Knapsack is shaped that way (funny shape - what does it represent?)
2) What IS that symbol on said knapsack - a flower, bird or shell?
3) What are those two 'lumps' (or are they field mice) on his left sleeve?
4) What does the circle above his head signify? is it inspired ideas or developed higher chakras?

5) also - can anyone recommend a site or THE pack that has the original colour scheme on it - the packs all seem to vary so much in their tones?

many thanks. Hope you all are having a joyous and free-flowing week Cara

1) Looks like a Prada bag. or like what Indiana Jones carries.
2) I think its an ACORN.
3) I don't see any mice, Im using the Universal Waite. The pictures are clearer.
4) The circle above his head is a ZERO, Signifying card 0.

Hope this helps, Cheers

Welcome to Aeclectic, Cara Jackson!

I'm in the process of working on a brand new index thread for this forum. The Majors and Minors are done. I have yet to figure out how I'm going to group the symbology topics together. The index can be found here.

Cara Jackson said:

Hello fellow tarot users,

Just wondering if your could help me? Was wondering :

1) why the Fools Knapsack is shaped that way (funny shape - what does it represent?)
2) What IS that symbol on said knapsack - a flower, bird or shell?
3) What are those two 'lumps' (or are they field mice) on his left sleeve?
4) What does the circle above his head signify? is it inspired ideas or developed higher chakras?

5) also - can anyone recommend a site or THE pack that has the original colour scheme on it - the packs all seem to vary so much in their tones?

many thanks. Hope you all are having a joyous and free-flowing week Cara

Click to expand...

Quick answers:
1) I don't believe anyone's ever asked that question before! I've honestly never given any thought to the shape of the bag!
2) In some decks it looks like an eagle's head, while in others it looks more like a butterfly. (Word to the wise - If you're going to get into examining the symbols in this deck, buy yourself a good magnifying glass!)
3) I'm not sure what lumps you're talking about. It really helps to say what version of the deck you're looking at. I don't see any "lumps" on the sleeve of the vintage yellow-box Rider Waite.
4) As Corvinus said, it's the number zero.
5) That's a whole different kettle of fish. I don't have the many threads on different editions of the deck indexed yet (although I will be adding this thread to the list momentarily!). Because Pamela Colman Smith's original artwork has not seen the light of day in decades (assuming it wasn't destroyed at some point), there's no consensus as to what the "original" color scheme is. The yellow-box and Pamela Colman Smith Commemorative deck are both based off the Pam A, while the Original Rider Waite is based off the Pam B. I'd suggest finding a printing you like and going with that instead of trying to find the "original" color scheme.

HTH,
Rodney

1 some things are just there to bare a symbol and do a job, it is not the shape or type of sack but rather what the sack represents. See 2 for that.
2 eagle.
3 sash.
4 "0"

Welcome to the site.

1. In The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, Waite calls the bag a 'wallet.' The Oxford American Dictionary says the origin of 'wallet' is a late Middle English word meaning 'a bag for provisions.' So I would say it's a traveling bag, resembling more closely what we would call a leather purse.

2. The symbol looks to me to be an eagle or hawk's head.

3. Where exactly are the 'lumps?' I don't really see anything like that.

5. When it comes to online scans, forget about it; they're all off to a greater or lesser degree. The best way to see the colors is to get a deck. But even they vary quite a bit. The deck was originally published in 1909. All the modern decks, starting in the early 70s, are nothing like the originals, with the possible exception of the Smith-Waite Centennial Edition that was published last year. It's probably the closest reproduction a person will find these days without mortgaging the farm for a real original. After that, the ones from the 70s are generally considered to have better colors than than any others. There are a lot of threads here describing all the different versions. They can be located using Advanced Search.