YIPES – Frater Orpheus obviously has quite the trove of Crowleyana. Here’re more alternate Thoth cards. He says on his FB feed:
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law
OK, here are the final alternate Trumps for which I have images. Like yesterday’s post, there are five…
The first card is a version of the Justice card, which Crowley entitled Adjustment. Minus a few small changes to her “headgear” and how the scale is attached thereby, this card in nearly identical to the adopted version. However, there has been a significant shift in tone, moving away from a more blue dominant scheme into green. This is likely to emphasize Libra’s connection to Venus, but also to show her connection to the Fool card who Crowley describes as its compliment, for their letters Aleph and Lamed (AL), “constitute the secret key of the Book of the Law.”
The second is another variation of the same card. It replicates the art deco-ish style found in many of the early rejected cards. There are just enough of these art deco inspired cards extant to ponder what an entire deck in this style might have looked like and I for one would have been a fan. Note that in this image the Black side of the Scale is to the left but that in the final adopted version this is moved to the right side to properly align with the Alpha & Omega.
The third is a powerful image of the Moon card which, though bearing similarities to the final version, takes on an entirely new “feel” with its dominantly red overtones which may, from a certain perspective, emphasize concepts related to the Blood of the Moon.
The fourth image is of an alternate Star card. The only significant difference that I have noted between this version and the final is here we see that the spirals of her hair – “the trees of eternity” – terminate into geometric crystalline structures which was a prevalent theme in Harris’s work. This likely relates to the “blindness of humanity to all beauty and wonder of the Universe is due to the illusion of straightness” as Crowley suggests further adding that it is from the lower Silver Cup that the “forms of energy issuing forth show rectilinear characteristics.”
Our final image is of an alternate Emperor, nearly identical to the final save that in this rendition, the necks of the rams are corkscrewed as if to emphasize the spiraling motion of the creative force in regards to Aries.
I hope you have been enjoying this week’s overview of Frieda Harris’s work. One more post forthcoming…
Love is the law, love under will
Orpheus
