Quantum James
One of the many things that I like about this deck is that when a card seems cryptic at first, if you investigate it further, in every instance one can discover why the creators chose to illustrate the archetype the way they did. And usually it not only illuminates the card meaning in a new way but it also brings new insight into Lovecraft's setting. New underlying patterns emerge. There usually is some psychological allegory too. They are using the tarot as a way to comment on Lovecrafts world, which is very clever indeed.
The 7 of pentacles is no exception. At first I was scratching my head about how this card could possibly relate to the traditional meaning but then it quickly dawned on me.
A man stands at his desk and in front of him on the table sits a large book, probably a grimoire. Next to that we see a blank piece of paper with a pen resting on it. All around him are statues and artefacts. Perhaps this stuff comes from the dreaded city of Irem, the City of Pillars, where the Mad Arab discovered the secrets of Necronomicon? Lurking behind him is a creepy ghoulish figure with tentacle arms.
The literal reading of this image is... Eeek! Monster behind the man - watch out! But there is more going on here...
The empty page and pen of suggest something needs to be written. The book must be opened. He even has cup of coffee resting beside him, ready to get started. He needs to get to work! This of course ties in with the traditional 7 of Pentacles meanings around the appraisal of work that needs to get done, procrastination, patience and so forth. Nonetheless, the monster is about to get him.
Resultantly, that ghoul behind him takes on some interesting psychological meaning.
As a chronic life-long procrastinator this image depicts exactly how I begin to feel in the grips of a really bad spasm of procrastination. The task that needs doing becomes more and more dreadful. It looms over me like some horrible ghoul. The worse I feel about it the the more I procrastinate. Just awful.
Additionally, I noticed something else about this guy. He has a middle parting in his hair - just like H.P. Lovecraft does (on the back of each card). This is the only place in the deck that male character has this parting. I would guess that this is a reference to mister Lovecraft himself, and more specifically, to his labours as author.
The 7 of pentacles is no exception. At first I was scratching my head about how this card could possibly relate to the traditional meaning but then it quickly dawned on me.
A man stands at his desk and in front of him on the table sits a large book, probably a grimoire. Next to that we see a blank piece of paper with a pen resting on it. All around him are statues and artefacts. Perhaps this stuff comes from the dreaded city of Irem, the City of Pillars, where the Mad Arab discovered the secrets of Necronomicon? Lurking behind him is a creepy ghoulish figure with tentacle arms.
The literal reading of this image is... Eeek! Monster behind the man - watch out! But there is more going on here...
The empty page and pen of suggest something needs to be written. The book must be opened. He even has cup of coffee resting beside him, ready to get started. He needs to get to work! This of course ties in with the traditional 7 of Pentacles meanings around the appraisal of work that needs to get done, procrastination, patience and so forth. Nonetheless, the monster is about to get him.
Resultantly, that ghoul behind him takes on some interesting psychological meaning.
As a chronic life-long procrastinator this image depicts exactly how I begin to feel in the grips of a really bad spasm of procrastination. The task that needs doing becomes more and more dreadful. It looms over me like some horrible ghoul. The worse I feel about it the the more I procrastinate. Just awful.
Additionally, I noticed something else about this guy. He has a middle parting in his hair - just like H.P. Lovecraft does (on the back of each card). This is the only place in the deck that male character has this parting. I would guess that this is a reference to mister Lovecraft himself, and more specifically, to his labours as author.
