on meeting the queen of earth

Court cards are often considered the most difficult to interpret in readings.  There are many different ways of approaching these cards but ultimately we have to form a relationship with them, get to know what kind of person they are and how they would think and act in certain situations. 

Traditionally in tarot readings, the reader would use a significator card for the person who was receiving the reading and this was often a court card.  Often the choice was based on physical characteristics such as hair and eye colour, or vocation or social standing.  In more recent times astrology, elemental associations or personality type have become more usual when choosing a significator.  I've never really liked using a significator in this way but I do often take note of certain court cards if they appear in the reading and determine then whether they may be significators for the person being read for. 

 Over the years I have come to realise that the Queen of Coins (or Disks, or Pentacles) is my own significator.  Had I been told this 15 years ago I would have scoffed and declared it nonsense, being more inclined to the intellect of the Queen of Swords, or the adventurous spirit of the Knight of Wands, but alas, I can now see myself in the Queen of the earth suit.

Above you can see her depicted first in the Rider Waite Smith deck and then in the Nigel Jackson deck.  In both she appears calm, thoughtful, introspective and stable.  Kind of boring I had always thought.  In the older decks this particular card is often portrayed as quite stiff and stern and pompous even.  You can see this below in both the Marseille and Soprafino styles. 

Paul Huson in his book 'Mystical Origins of the Tarot' links this Queen to the character of Argine which comes from the old playing card associations.  (Below is the card from his Dame Fortune's Wheel deck).  Other authors, Nigel Jackson included, link this Queen to the biblical Rachel.  In many theme decks the courts are linked with characters in myth and below in the Mythic Tarot we see the character of Omphale who is said to reflect the qualities of this particular card.

 In most tarot decks this Queen is associated with the element of earth and therefore money, prosperity, industry, health, wealth and stability.  I guess this is why I initially resisted her so much. 

In some more modern decks she has become more the earth mother, in touch with nature, kind, caring, generous and even spiritual.

 

 

 
My personal favourite Earth Queen is depicted in the Crowley Thoth deck, illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris.  The Golden Dawn associated this Queen with the last 10 degrees of the astrological sign of Sagittarius and the first 20 degrees of the sign of Capricorn.  I love how this image seems to bring together both signs, particularly in how she gazes out as if contemplating where her next adventure will take her.  So while she has the stability and solidity typical of the earth element, she also has that spark of curiosity, the secret side that wants to learn and explore.  I guess with this card I was finally able to relate to the archetype and from there appreciate her many different depictions.

Another of my favourite depictions has to be in the Halloween Tarot as the Queen of Pumpkins.  Here we see all her wonderful qualities of stability, security, material prosperity, introspection, caring, nurturing and being in touch with nature. 

Having spent many years working with this Queen, in many different decks, I do now feel like I 'know' her.  Perhaps it is when you begin to be able to see yourself in the card that you can finally make the connection and then it ultimately becomes second nature what she will mean in a reading.

In this post the cards depicted (in order of appearance) are from the following decks:
Cosmic, Crystal, Rider-Waite-Smith, Nigel Jackson, Conver Tarot de Marseilles, Ancient Italian (Soprafino), Dame Fortune's Wheel, Mythic, Tarot of the Master (Vacchetta), Alchemical Renewed, Merryday, Robin Wood, Druidcraft, Ancestral Path, Crowley Thoth, Halloween.