Ludy Lescot - Kings and Queens

[Aerin]

When I was looking at these I notcied some potential connections between them, so I thought I'd do both at once.

Wands: They both are associated with lions - she has a carved lioness statue by her throne, he has a live lion at his feet. There's a lot of fire around him, but in her hands this is about the life spark within the flower she holds and maybe the stained glass behind her. He's looking at you as if he doesn't know what to make of what he sees, but she's just contemplating the flower in her hand.

Swords: What a scary pair!- straight from a horror film. Their backgrounds both have a stormy quality to them, and there's something very controlled and/ or controlling there. He looks like a justice bringer with the cross, the sword and the scales, and I can't imagine it being tempered by mercy. At first glance, she looks very passive but I'm not convinced, I think she's just as dangerous but in a more subtle way. There's a strange contrast between the way she's buttoned up to the neck and her silk stocking top showing - what's that about? Is she a vampire queen do you think?

Pentacles: He seems like he's a master of the universe - time and space are both represented behind him. A rather androgenous figure. She, on the other hand, seems more sensual and has some empress-like trappings what with the large rabbit and the roses. I get the impression that she's into the sensual side of the physical world wheras he's into the intellectual side.

Cups: I think he's an alchemist, what with the glass vessel and the Owl, his feet rest on what looks like a brass half-globe of the World. Those glass windows remind me of the ones in the Queen of Wands. Is that blood by his chair? And what's that strange shaped cup about that has him looking so pensive? She seems more relaxed holding that cup with the pentacle on it. I'm not sure what she's planning though, that thigh flash seems rather calculated (what IS it with these Queens and thighs???). The eye topped triangle inscribed by her marble throne echose her King's necklace perhaps.

[Hemera]

Just looking at the King of Wands. He´s got a huge...er...cellphone in his pocket..?

[RunningWild]

The King of Wands is intense. Knows what he wants and plans to deliver. I'm not so sure about the cellphone though

It's the King of Chalices that gets me every time I look at the card. The glass vial, which I assume to be representative of the Tree of Life ...and Kings are manifestation, am I right?
Add to that the lengthened leather belt. All I can say is...dang! Maybe I'm just imagining things, and if so, what an imagination!

The King of Swords reminds me of some die-hard head-bangin' rock band, the names of which I don't know but I think one day he'll tell me (and I still won't understand because I won't speak the language).


The King of Pentacles feels cold. He's busy taking inventory of his belongings. He's dressed opulently and warmly because of his cold environment, yet his chest is exposed because of the fire within. Again manifestation. He holds a scepter that emits a light and everything around him seems like it's made of the things we value materially: marble (throne), gold (his belongings), all the finery and refinery (the comforts we aspire to).

[RunningWild]

To me, all the Queens seem introspective. All but one is looking at something else or otherwise has their eyes averted. I'm not sure that the Queen of Chalices is looking at or through something.

The Queen of Wands seems to be contemplating the design of a sunflower. Her scepter is held casually like it's just something she always carries around. Unlike the other three queens, her thigh is not exposed anywhere. Instead, it's her hips, her stance, that dominates.

The Queen of Swords is perhaps receptive but unhappy about it. As if it's just too much. She's buttoned up because she's cut off, unexposed (except the very top of her thigh!). There are storm clouds with a small parting of sky above her. Her stone throne appears to be a tombstone (well sheesh, look at her king!) which is resting atop dead autumn leaves. She's lost some part of herself.

I like the Queen of Chalices in this deck. The Chalice she's holding appears to emit some sort of vapor, perhaps alluding to the intuitive nature of this queen. She's wearing a headband with a jewel over the spot where we imagine the third eye to be. Her dress/bodice exposes cleavage...her nurturing nature. And her gaze. You just don't know what she's seeing, whether it's near or distant, whether it's something physical that's caught her attention or something ethereal. Whatever it is, it has her full attention.

The Queen of Pentacles is sitting among her roses in a warm sunny garden. A pentagram (?) dangles from the band around her neck. The rabbit next to her with ears laid back appears to be getting ready to bolt! LOL She's comfortable.

[Hemera]

Great, thank you RunningWild. I got some more interesting notes to my Ludy Lescot notebook from all this

[MaineGirl117]

The King of Pentacles, what's strange about his necklace is that the symbol is the fire triangle (energy and desire), in the bowl before him it looks like water (spiritual understanding), the mechanics behind him could represent air (technical skill)??

And the cube behind the king... I know I'm relying a lot on information coming from 78 Degrees of Wisdom , but under the passage for the Emperor she speaks about the cube and it's symbolism:

Also an esoteric symbol, the cube symbolizes both the world and the Tarot itself, as well as the Hebrew alphabet and the paths of the Tree of Life. The symbolism aries from the face that a cube contains twelve edges, six faces, three axes, and of course a centre, adding up to twenty-two, the number of trumps, Hebrew letters, and paths. And because the Tree of Life is held to represent all creation the cube symbolizes the universe."

The Queen of Pentacles seems to be holding out her hand below the rose, is it her gift to illuminate this rose and not just a mere coincidence that it has a hallow surrounding it? The halo being a symbol of enlightenment and magic in nature. Her necklace is a reversed pentagram to the viewer, but not to her.

And the butterfly appears to be yellow and black (or maybe only yellow and the black is just an outline?). Butterflies have been associated in folklore traditions to the relationship between the Faerie Realm and nature. In Angelology the black and yellow butterflies, specifically (Zebra Heliconius) are associated with the archangel Auriel in her earthly form as she presides over the activities of the nature spirits.

The King of Cups holds a distillation flask in his hands. When heat is applied to the bottom, the liquid will vaporize and separate by weight into the side chambers. This is a process to get a pure substance, and I can only assume this would be the elixir of life seen by the cup which could be the holy grail?? The fluid in the flask appears to be blood - some may have spilled on the floor? He wears the symbol of his suit around his neck, the inverted triangle stands for water.

The Queen of Cups could very well be holding the elixir in her cup, but it is vaporizing away and she seems unconcerned about this. Part of the LWB interpretation might explain this:

If you sit on a throne, tighten your heart cruelly with a strap and life will flee from your chalice. Refuse the crown, and you will refuse the chain"

Did anybody else notice the mirror behind this Queen's head? I think there's half a man's face reflected in it. And the masonic symbol appears at her feet, pointing towards her. Strangely enough though, you don't see an 'eye' in the top of the pyramid. Anybody have a magnifying glass? Does it look like the world instead? Like the picture of the King?

The Queen of Swords - strange how she's the only Queen actually connected to the earth with her shoes being off. Even the Queen of Pentacles has her feet on a pillow and not in direct contact with nature. She wears the fire triangle here as earrings, the rain falls behind her (water), she is in contact with the ground (earth).

The King of Swords - wearing a wooden cross? Seems rather odd. Triangles both upright and reversed adorn his cloak - the symbolism repeats yet again. And he's standing on the top of checkerboard flooring. From one perspective I want to think he's on top of a tower, but the flanking images make it look more like a chamber. Can't reconcile this image in my head.

The King and Queen of Wands have no jewelry except his crown and the band around her head. The salamander rests on his shoulder and the lion at his feet. Can't seem to make heads or tails of these two.

[Hemera]

Kings and Queens can be seen here. (Thanks MaineGirl117 for the scans!)

[Prasomchai]

"The stone often hides privileges from view."

From the Deviant Moon LWB:

Those who dwell in the city of pentacles are hardworking and industrious. However, they sometimes pay the price of placing material gain over spiritual well-being.

The great king holds the silvery emblem of his industrial dynasty. Although skilled in the ways of business and trade, he focuses too heavily on material gain over spiritual enlightenment.

[La Force]

hello ladies

I have a question about the King of Pentacles. would any of you know what the names are for the devices protrayed in the card.

the stand, with the hand held scepter device which is illuminated above the stand, and the astrological device in the back ground attached to the wheels of a clock.

would really like to know thanks

[MaineGirl117]

Sorry La Force, I couldn't tell you the names of the equipment itself.