Golden Tarot of Klimt - The Hierophant V

I was waiting for Minotauro to open the thread to the Klimt Hierophant since he's such a great researcher. Anyway, since I'm into Klimt at present, I thought I'd dabble a bit on this one.

I found what I think is the website where the face of Gustav Klimt may have been lifted to use in this card. www.hierophant.com.br Unfortunately, I don't understand Italian so I ended up just staring at the picture for awhile and comparing it to the Hierophant card. In the picture, Klimt was hold a cat and looked older and "poorer". In the card, he looked more steady, confident, serious and learned. I hope some of our Italian members or anyone who speaks the language may shed some light on what was written in the website.

Like it or not, I love the robe he's wearing in the card. If I owned a textile manufacturing firm, I'd ask them to design a cloth or fabric of this kind and make robes out of it. Kidding aside, The Hierophant has his right hand as if clutching close to his left chest while his left hand holds the staff that seems to signify wisdom.

In the booklet, the description goes: Modesty, moral severity, religiousness. The shadow side may be Envy, intolerance, unkept promises.

The Hierophant card seems to suggest integrity, keeper of wisdom and knowledge, ethical but not judgmental, composed yet wisdom-filled ... he reminds me of a professor. His face tells me "I know a lot of things; you can see it in my eyes that I watch you with keen observing eyes, and I am quite perceptive. However..."

However, while he may be the Hierophant, and he clutches his staff and his other hand is close to his chest, could it be that he may also prefer to keep things to himself? Only when asked will he say it. Perhaps, there are already some things I need to know but because I dare not ask, he will not reveal them to me.

Most likely, if ever I do get this card, i may look at it a number of ways: What wisdom do I already possess which I can use to help me through a situation? What else is there to know? Could it be that I may have some insights but I hesitate to share? Why would I feel this way? Am I being too detached to the point of coldness, false modesty or impatience?

This is one card I need to understand further.

I think that website is actually in portuguese.
.com.br , could it be from brasil?


but I didnt see the picture you talked about anyway :c

lets see if this link works
http://www.klimt.com/museum/foto3.html

the picture title is "klimt with his cat" XD haha

for me the hierophant is or should be not a person who takes you by the hand and teaches you all the answer. it is instead someone who points you in the right direction so you discover the thruth by yourself.


he holds the staff firmly , he ooks more serious in the card , in the photo klimt is smiling ,in teh card he looks more serious, could this be because of the missing cat? =P

the lack of the cat is important to me because when I first saw the card I thought something was missing in it ,I thought perhaps a book?

he also looks older in the card. experience? the old ways? tradition?

he's giving his back against the weird red thingy , a spirit? demon? giving you back to what? or is it something he left behind? something carnal and passionate?

all those abstract shapes and backgrounds and textures change meaning from reading to reading , in one it could mean blood in another it could be just background noise.

the hierophant , is ussualy the one who teaches the holy things , the one who interprets the signs and shows the congregation the symbols , here klimt is the one who actually created the symbols , or perhaps just the one who gave it a physical, visual shape to abstract ideas.

if you have read my previopus post in this group yo probably have seen I ussualy search for what klimt had to said about the painting at hand , this shed some light about how the card reate to the given meanings , things that perhaps wouldnt have been obvious at first glace ,so in that way he has been, to me , the one who interprets the symbols. the one who "teaches me"

Hi Minotauro

Very enlightening. Here's the complete website of where I saw the picture. It's the same one. You're right -- it might be Brazil.

http://www.hierophant.com.br/arcano/posts/view/Fool/672

Thanks for sharing your insight. At least, it helps me to understand the possible difference between the Klimt in the picture holding the cat and the klimt of the card.

Actually. now that I think of it... understanding a tarot card and appreciating its historical insights is quite an exciting search. In the Etruscan Tarot, I felt like an Indiana Jones searching for paintings in the ancient Etruscan Tombs. In searching for Klimt paintings, I feel like the detective in the Thomas Crown Affair figuring out what the motive of the "thief" would be and which painting will he strike at.

Thank God you're there to shed light in this. Am learning a lot from you. Looking forward to your next.

poopsie said:

Hi Minotauro

Very enlightening. Here's the complete website of where I saw the picture. It's the same one. You're right -- it might be Brazil.

http://www.hierophant.com.br/arcano/posts/view/Fool/672

Thanks for sharing your insight. At least, it helps me to understand the possible difference between the Klimt in the picture holding the cat and the klimt of the card.

Actually. now that I think of it... understanding a tarot card and appreciating its historical insights is quite an exciting search. In the Etruscan Tarot, I felt like an Indiana Jones searching for paintings in the ancient Etruscan Tombs. In searching for Klimt paintings, I feel like the detective in the Thomas Crown Affair figuring out what the motive of the "thief" would be and which painting will he strike at.

Thank God you're there to shed light in this. Am learning a lot from you. Looking forward to your next.

Click to expand...

gee well thanks X) Im actually just a little bit obsesive and very adept to google search =P and well I've noticed many people dont understand lo scarabeo choice of images for certain cards , but when you research about the painting itself what it meant and what klimt had to say about it , it just makes sense. so you know they made their research , it wasnt just a random choice , and its not the obvious rider waite like image. it has its own symbology.

and I actually have been reading about the next painting ,there's SO much about that one the most famous one from him probably, but Im on finals right now so I havent started new threads =P

wow! Am looking forward to that one!