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Tarot Cards: The Major Arcana of Faul
Tarot Cards: The Major Arcana of Faul
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Collectible tarot cards, unique in the world: they are associated with characters, stories, places, and events from the Middle Ages. Step into a world of wonder with these captivating Tarot cards, inspired by the mystical history of Viterbo, the first city in Italy to welcome Tarot cards.
Each card is meticulously crafted, rich with symbolism and profound insights. Unlock hidden truths, and embark on a transformative path of self-discovery.
The card box includes a booklet with history, symbolism and insights for each of The Major Arcana of Faul tarot cards. There are 23 tarot cards, from Arcanum 0 to Arcanum XXI, plus the "Jolly" card.
Individual card details
ARCANUM 0
Name
"The Fool"
DESCRIPTION
A jester walks impassively along his way without worrying about a dog attacking him. He carries a small bag and a stick
SYMBOLISM
It represents the rational part of mankind, that can lead to both good and evil.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Unpredictability and extravagance, there are certainly also obvious symptoms of genius.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Frisigello, the medieval figure of this skilled jester who “faceva giochi meravigliosi di nove maniere, il qual in quel tempo non trovava pari, et ne fu fatta certa memoria nel corticale della chiesa di St. Angelo della Spada, nella parete d’avanti” (“played wonderful games in innovative ways, who at that time did not have equals, and was remembered and worshipped in the cortex of the church of St. Angelo della Spada, on the front wall”). This is how the Tuscia remembers him.
ARCANUM I
NAME
The Magician, the juggler.
DESCRIPTION
A young magician sits in front of his desk, on which working tools are placed.
SYMBOLISM
It is life itself that requires skill and intelligence.
GENERAL MEANINGS
As a "maker of his own fortune" the magician represents creative will and intuition. He represents the one who, through his personal merits, achieves his goal. He is the adept in the religion of mysteries.
PERSONAL ASSOCIATION
Pietro Hispano Giovanni XXI Peter Juliani, who chose to call himself John XXI also known as Petrus Hispanus, was crowned in the cathedral of Viterbo on the 20th of September 1276. Ever since the beginning he had relationships issues with most of the ecclesiastics of the curia because he was considered by most of them as a magician, a pundit, a heretic. He had a large room built in the papal palace with a splendid view to be used as a bedroom and a study. The ceiling of that room suddenly collapsed on the night between the 10th and 11th of May 1277, burying the Pope in the ruins. His tomb lies in the cathedral of Viterbo and he is among the few pontiffs mentioned by Dante in his Paradiso.
ARCANUM II
NAME
The High Priestess, the Popess, pride.
DESCRIPTION
A woman of imposing appearance and solemn face.
SYMBOLISM
It represents the feminine principle of life. The ancient mother who instills wisdom.
GENERAL MEANINGS
She indicates the bride, nature. She can also represent receptivity in divination.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Donna Olimia Pamphili Widow of Paolo Nini, a nobleman from Viterbo, Donna Olimpia enters the spheres of Roman power. She was known for the boundless ambition that led her to dominate the weak personality of her brother in law, the Pontiff. However, we cannot forget the urbanisation works of the village in an elegant principality when in 1654 Pope Innocence X gave her the title of Princess of San Martino.
ARCANUM III
NAME
The Empress.
DESCRIPTION
A woman crowned with an impassive but serene gaze. She sits on the throne holding a sceptre in one hand, and a shield in the other.
SYMBOLISM
Universal fecundity. Nature that operates.
GENERAL MEANINGS
It indicates the one who, with her abilities and her strong will, gives life to all things.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The young Rose. Rosa was born in Viterbo in 1233 and despite her gentle appearance, she did not hesitate to challenge the hatred of the powerful enemies of her homeland. She lead the masses to fight against Frederick II and the Ghibellines like a true warrior, so much so that when she asked to be accepted as part of the Clarisse sisterhood she was not accepted because her attitude went against religious principles. Seven years after her death (March 6, 1252) Pope Alexander IV had her body moved from the mass grave to the current basilica of St. Rosa. Every year since 1258 on the 4th of September Viterbo remembers this event with the transport of the “Macchina di Santa Rosa” (tower of St. Rosa).
ARCANUM IV
NAME
The Emperor
DESCRIPTION
He is a middle-aged ruler sitting on the throne. With one hand he holds a scepter, with the other a shield that depicts an Eagle.
SYMBOLISM
It represents earthly power and will.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Security, character, authority. He who is aware of his strength and his power.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Frederick II. The great figure of Frederick II appeared in the history of Italy in 1220 and even more so in the history of Viterbo. His conflict with the papacy remains one of the most remarkable events of this troublesome medieval period. One of the events of the military life of Frederick II gave Viterbo the opportunity to write perhaps one of the most beautiful pages in its history, in which we see the austere figures of Raniero Capocci and Rosa of Viterbo, a humble and gentle young woman who, protected only by her faith, did not hesitate to challenge him. The coin he holds in his hand serves as a reminder that the city, taking advantage of the right to coin money granted by himself in the second half of the thirteenth century, opened a mint and created a new currency that took the name of viterbino.
ARCANUM V
NAME
The Pope.
DESCRIPTION
A great priest imparts his blessing to two of his ministers.
SYMBOLISM
It represents the sacred law, divine inspiration.
GENERAL MEANINGS
It indicates loyalty, good advice represents the one who, driven by a profound vocation, leads disciples towards the mysteries of life.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Alexander IV In 1254 Pope Alexander IV was elected and held his pontificate for only seven years. Alexander IV died on the 25th of May 1261 in Viterbo, where years before he had prudently moved the Papal seat, in the fear of the persecutions and riots that oppressed the Church of Rome in that historical time frame. For the same reasons, after his death, in order to avoid profanation, his remains were hidden inside the cathedral of St. Lorenzo in Viterbo where they currently rest in a secret location. He began the canonisation process of Santa Rosa da Viterbo and he was responsible for the first transport of the “Macchina”. He was also the first to introduce the figures of the “Facchini” (the citizens of Viterbo who transported the “Macchina” throughout the city center) with their characteristic white clothing and cardinal red waistband and headgear, which represent the purity of priestly clothes.
ARCANUM VI
NAME
The Lovers, love.
DESCRIPTION
Two young people united in a "sacred bond". In heaven love consecrates them definitively.
SYMBOLISM
The union between two beings, but also the antagonism "between the two sexes". The conflict between vice and virtue.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Good feelings, desires but also temptations.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
La Bella Galiana and the Roman prince. The Galiana tower, with a round opening that seems to have been made specifically to look out of it, is the poetic scenario of the legend passed down by the chroniclers of the “The beautiful Galiana, who could not find equal beauty". According to the legend, she fell victim to the immense and unbridled love of the powerful Roman prince who had dragged his army to Viterbo to conquer it, and who, disappointed by her refusal, had preferred the pain of seeing her dead to the thought of her being loved by others.
ARCANUM VII
NAME
The chariot, triumph, the shard.
DESCRIPTION
A wagon pulled by two horses that respectively pull in opposite directions but both are facing the same destination.
SYMBOLISM
It is the triumph of the spirit over nature. It is the motto that conquers all conflicts.
GENERAL MEANINGS
It represents glory. However it also implies caution and the ability of those who must lead a vehicle through possible obstacles, because they will always know how to evaluate the opposing factors and will triumph over everything.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The Wagon of the Holy Saviour The devotion of the Holy Saviour began to manifest itself In Viterbo towards the end of the 12th century, probably introduced by one of the pontiffs who lived there at that time. The solemn procession started from the Church of Santa Maria Nuova, where the parade was formed according to the order provided by the statute. The procession was initiated by the art of the yokels on horseback, an honour granted in memory of those yokels who rediscovered the image of the Saviour in 1283 in the field of Chirichera. The procession ceased for a certain time in 1901 due to the disappearance of the “Arts Corporations” and for the well established cult of Santa Rosa. It was taken up again in 1918 (1917?) in a less ostentatious way than before, and the triptych placed over an agricultural wagon pulled by oxen went back to tread the streets of the historic center.
ARCANUM VIII
NAME
Justice
DESCRIPTION
A seated figure, severe but impartial, administers justice. He holds a sword in his right hand and a scale in his left hand.
SYMBOLISM
It represents the supreme and incorruptible law.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Harmony, equity and virtue are the most obvious aspects of this card. Whoever respects the law must not suffer any punishment.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Raniero Gatti. Exponent of a noble family that played a leading role in the city's history between the 12th and 15th century. He was the first to carry the Gatti surname officially from 1253 and to add a cat to the family crest, symbol of dexterity and ability, fundamental qualities for social ascent. He was the first exponent of the family to play a significant role in political life and took a position in the disputes between the city factions, linking the destinies of his lineage to the papacy precisely in the years in which Viterbo was lined up with Federico II. Starting in 1246, Gatti assumed direct and prominent responsibilities in the political life of Viterbo, which from that moment and for two decades was monopolised by his family. Between September of that year and March 1247 he was one of the four rectors of the town, while after the definitive return of the city to papal obedience in 1252 he was elected Captain of the people three times (1257 - 58 - 59 - 1266), a role which was successively covered by his sons Visconte and Raniero. The card symbolises what is true in life: justice is the same for everyone but not everyone is equal for justice.
ARCANUM IX
NAME
The hermit, the elderly, the wise, the poor.
DESCRIPTION
An old wiseman walks slowly, supported by his cane. With one hand he holds a lantern to light the way.
SYMBOLISM
The great master who helps those who are lost.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Wisdom and asceticism but also caution and prudence. Those who are engaged in the eternal search for truth must live isolated from the world.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
San Girolamo In the beechwood of Monte Fogliano, 1 km from the St. Angelo convent, stands the hermitage of St. Girolamo. The small complex is entirely dug into a rock and was the home of Friar Girolamo Gabrielli, who in 1525 retired to this place of penance determined to devote his entire life to meditation and prayer.
ARCANUM X
NAME
The wheel, the wheel of fortune.
DESCRIPTION
A large wheel, still and in balance. Various figures hold on to it.
SYMBOLISM
It is life in its right balance, involution or evolution.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Happiness is progress. A certain dose of inventive can lead to victories in in any field. However, great care is required: the wheel can always turn in the opposite direction.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Empire and Papacy The image is inspired by a miniature of the XIII of the "Carmina Burana", where Frederick II, who is placed at the center of the wheel, represents the eternal fight for power that determined the internal conflicts of Viterbo. The wheel sometimes turned in favour of one and sometimes in favour of the other. The towers placed at the top of the wheel with the typical Guelph and Ghibelline merlons show a precarious balance of the two powers.
ARCANUM XI
NAME
Strength.
DESCRIPTION
A beautiful young woman, without showing any kind of effort, holds a lion by its open jaws.
SYMBOLISM
It is the mysterious power of the mind, that dominates matter. The conscious and the unconscious.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Heroism, challenges, but also courage. It's proof that you don't need muscles to win. Hence the representation of a woman rather than a strong man.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Giulia Farnese Her attractiveness, which earned her the nickname of “Giulia the beautiful” amongst her contemporaries, guided her and her family towards power and wealth, bringing great fortune to the Farnese family. Giulia was born in Capodimonte, a fortress located on Lake Bolsena, in 1475. Her father was Pierluigi I, the leader and lord of Montalto di Castro, who agreed with Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia on the engagement between his daughter Giulia and Orsino Orsini, the Cardinal's nephew. It is unknown whether at the date of the wedding Giulia was already Rodrigo Borgia’s lover, as it is also unknown whether the daughter of Giulia Laura Orsini was Orsino’s or Rodrigo’s. At this point she was known as the lover of the Pope, who was completely blinded by the passion for that provocative young rebel, who earned her the nickname of papal concubine. The Pope even threatened Giulia with excommunication if she had left his side. Thanks to his intelligence he was able to manage his life
ARCANUM XII
NAME
The hanged man.
DESCRIPTION
A bearded man hanging with his hands tied.
SYMBOLISM
It is the symbol of sacrifice and renewal.
GENERAL MEANINGS
The discipline of the efforts that bring significant changes if not real inner change. This is the only way to pass the toughest tests, to aspire to transform oneself.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Fabrizio Bartolucci from Valentano He was hanged because he was unjustly accused of theft and murder. He pleaded to the Madonna della Quercia to arrive at the truth and his exoneration. The false witnesses retracted as so: “et detto Fabbritio portò il suo voto l’anno 1554” ("and said Fabbritio brought his vote in the year 1554”).
ARCANUM XIII
NAME
Death.
DESCRIPTION
A skeleton that mows heads and hands.
SYMBOLISM
It is the symbol of transformation, rebirth and liberation. It does not necessarily symbolise physical death but the end of a cycle.
GENERAL MEANINGS
This card with dual meaning indicates the end of a given situation (whether positive or negative).
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Piazza della Morte (Death Square) This square is the perfect setting for this card. It was so called from the name of a brotherhood that had a long residence there. Adjacent to the square we can find the evocative cemetery street, where it is still possible to see a skull carved in stone on a portal.
ARCANUM XIV
NAME
Temperance
DESCRIPTION
An angel pouring the water of life from one amphora to another.
SYMBOLISM
It is the symbol of vital balance achieved precisely through self-control and discipline. The essential concept of the card is the continuity of the spirit or of the soul through various transformations.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Moderation, reflection, serenity, self-control, everything that represents absolute calm.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The restored jug In the fountain of Santa Maria in Poggio, today known as Piazza della Crocetta, the prodigious restoration of a jug took place, accidentally broken by a companion of Rosa. In the square there is a fountain in which the traditional scheme is replaced in the superior part by a sculptural group in stone that recalls said miracle
ARCANUM XV
NAME
The devil.
DESCRIPTION
A horned demon with bat wings seems to warn everyone. At his feet there are two chained demonic figures.
SYMBOLISM
It represents degeneration and ruin. Diabolical temptation.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Magnetism, unbridled passion. But it is also the card of the "genius" who can afford everything and for whom there is neither good nor evil.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The Bullicame Science, poetry and legend all illustrate this unique vulcano. According to historians, in 1320 this vulcano gave birth to those demons which, in the form of bodies and strange animals, intended to submerge Viterbo and which, after being expelled by the intercession of the Madonna Liberatrice, were seen throwing themselves with horrifying screams into the Bullicame. Dante, perhaps during his stay in Rome during the jubilee of the 1300s, had visited this location. He wanted to remember it in the 12th canto of his Inferno, where he alludes to a famous event in the history of Viterbo: the murder of Henry of Cornwall. “... il Centauro s’affisse - Sopra una gente che ’nfino alla gola - Parea che di quel Bulicame uscisse - Mostrocci un’ombra dall’un canto sola...” ("A little farther on the Centaur stopped Above a folk, who far down as the throat ... Seemed from that boiling stream to issue forth. A shade he showed us on one side alone”) and that scornful and solitary shadow was Guido di Monteforte, who had murdered the Prince of England in the Church of St. Silvestro in Viterbo.
ARCANUM XVI
NAME
The tower, the tower of Babel, lightning.
DESCRIPTION
A tower struck by lightning and people falling into the void.
SYMBOLISM
It is a warning to human arrogance and unbridled ambition. Fall, ruin. Analogies with the tower of Babel.
GENERAL MEANINGS
It indicates the collapse of a situation based on our alleged intellectual or material capacities.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Torre Damiata The famous Damiata Tower can be found near the Monastery of San Bernardino, which extends to Piazza San Carluccio (St. Carluccio Square). This tower is amongst the oldest in the city and belonged to the Cocco family. It was dismantled and rebuilt several times and legend says that amongst its ruins a marble was found, in which the famous Decree of Desire was carved. Today the base of this colossal tower is still visible, whose possession in the XIII century was a frequent cause of terrible conflicts. This tower even had the protection of the Roman people when Nicola Cocco, given the conflictual relationships with his fellow citizens, sided with the Romans against Viterbo.
ARCANUM XVII
NAME
The star
DESCRIPTION
A figure pours the water of life from two amphorae. In the sky the stars spread their benevolent influence.
SYMBOLISM
Indicates the favour of heaven towards our achievements. The star of the Wise Men. Hope.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Hope for prosperity, optimism; those who work purely are welcome in heaven.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The pilgrim of the Via Francigena A pilgrim, during a stretch of the Via Francigena, kneels on the shores of Lake Bolsena and draws water that represents the source of all life. Christian symbolism considers the shell as an image of the tomb that encloses man before resurrection and is a symbol of the pilgrims who follow the star to go in the right direction
ARCANUM XVIII
NAME
The moon.
DESCRIPTION
The moon brightly illuminates two howling dogs. In the water a shrimp waits.
SYMBOLISM
It represents daily life with all its dangers. Hidden enemies. Dog servility; shrimp falls in the matter.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Dangers and calumnies threaten us. Unclear, deceptive and secret things surround us. The light of the moon is misleading. No dangers can be seen.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The witches of Montecchio Between history and legend the witches of Montecchio from Bagnaia continue to fascinate. On full moon nights they used to practice white magic in a sacred area at the top of the mountain. It is not strange to see dogs howling at the moon, but even the shrimp is connected to the moon because it walks back and forth. In other words, it makes a reversed journey, being born to the west and dying to the east. The shrimp is also present on the crest of Cardinal de Gambara, to whom we owe the greatest gratitude for the construction of Villa Lante.
ARCANUM XIX
NAME
The Sun
DESCRIPTION
A radiant sun illuminates two children.
SYMBOLISM
It is the happiness that comes from love and tranquility. Material happiness. Realisation.
GENERAL MEANINGS
He who acts in the light of the sun will be blessed with happiness.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
Rosa Venerini Rosa Venerini was born in Viterbo in 1656. There are at least two good reasons to remember this woman, who was canonised by Benedict XVI in 2016. She was the first to conceive and realise the project of opening public schools for girls in Italy, and she courageously committed herself “in favour of the spiritual elevation and authentic emancipation of the young women of her time”. She illuminated the path of these young women, leading them from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge. The institutes of the Pie Venerini have crossed national borders.
ARCANUM XX
NAME
Judgment, the angel, the tombs.
DESCRIPTION
An angel announces the judgment; a man, a woman and a child rise from the graves.
SYMBOLISM
It is man's last chance to get out of the prison of the materialistic world. Development, change of position.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Only those who listen to the call of the spirit can transform themselves, be reborn to new life.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The Monteverde angel Camposanto of Viterbo is situated in the plain of St. Lazzaro. Various chapels are noteworthy for their richness and design; among these we find the one dedicated to the memory of Filippo de Parri. On De Parri’s urn Giulio Monteverde made his wonderful angel of resurrection, which, leaning against the tomb, seems to be waiting for God's signal to echo the ring on the silent valley. In the iconography of the resurrections of the dead in general we often see naked bodies to remember that in the end man is born naked and returns to the earth equally naked
ARCANUM XXI
NAME
The World, the universe.
DESCRIPTION
A semi-naked woman in the middle of a crown. On the four sides of the card the symbols of the apocalypse (the angel, the eagle, the bull, the lion).
SYMBOLISM
The last summary, success, the magnetic action of the cosmos.
GENERAL MEANINGS
Luck, integrity, security, perfection; only those who possess all virtues can reach their purpose: it becomes “world", and therefore pure.
PERSONAL COMBINATION
The City of the Popes. In the first half of the sixteenth century the legends of Annio from Viterbo triumphed. The initials of the four castles Fano, Arbano, Vetulonia and Longula, whose union allegedly originated the city of Viterbo, are carved on the quadrants of a globe that is given in custody to a lion, symbol of the city. This symbol refers to the world that is ideally represented by the city of the popes.
The "Consultant" is the artist's signature Arcanum. The artist, having conceived the artwork in ceramic form and not wanting to "alter" the symbolism by placing her name on a "blade," decided to play along, aligning with the same principle through which the cards enter Viterbo.
If you truly want to protect a secret, you must not hide it; you must place it in plain sight of everyone, thereby rendering its power seemingly invisible.
The "Consultant," the one who studies situations, people, and above all, oneself in relation to the context. In the study of the Arcana, we find a veiled metaphor of life, in an alchemical journey where we are engaged in the search for gold—a precious treasure that already lies within us—through the transformation of lead.
Life can deal us wonderful cards, but if we are unable to play them, we will not succeed in winning over life. Conversely, we may receive terrible cards that, through effort and willpower, we can skillfully transform into winning ones.
The "Consultant"
The Consultant is the artist's signature Arcanum. The artist, having conceived the artwork in ceramic form and not wanting to "alter" the symbolism by placing her name on a "blade," decided to play along, aligning with the same principle through which the cards enter Viterbo.
If you truly want to protect a secret, you must not hide it; you must place it in plain sight of everyone, thereby rendering its power seemingly invisible.
The "Consultant," the one who studies situations, people, and above all, oneself in relation to the context. In the study of the Arcana, we find a veiled metaphor of life, in an alchemical journey where we are engaged in the search for gold—a precious treasure that already lies within us—through the transformation of lead.
Life can deal us wonderful cards, but if we are unable to play them, we will not succeed in winning over life. Conversely, we may receive terrible cards that, through effort and willpower, we can skillfully transform into winning ones.
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