The Lost Tarot of Nostradamus Ebook. John Matthews
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passing connection with Joachim’s work.
Looking through the volume, Massa and Pinotti were astonished and excited to find the name “Michel de Nostredame” inscribed on the title page. Then, in the back of the volume, they found a postscript dated 1629, apparently added by one of the librarians through whose hands the book had passed, which stated that the book had been presented by one Brother Beroaldus to Cardinal Maffeo Barberini, who would later become Pope Urban VIII (1623–1644). The same covering note suggests that the images were devised by Nostradamus but painted by his son César de Nostredame (known to have studied art), who later sent the book to Rome as a gift. A letter written by César to the French scientist Fabri de Peiresc in the same year (1629) mentions a collection of miniatures painted by himself, and a booklet destined to be a gift for King Louis XIII. Could this booklet be The Lost Book? No precise evidence exists to connect the two, but there is no reason to discount the possibility.
What we can say, with reasonable certainty, is that César de Nostredame was an artist (though admittedly of little talent) and that he refers to a book of images he had painted. These could well be the original volume now known as the Vaticinia Nostradami or The Lost Book of Nostradamus. If so, there is every reason to believe that the images were painted at the behest of Michel de Nostrademe himself, possibly even from sketches he had made, and that they constitute a series of visual references to the Centuries. César himself never showed any sign of following in his father’s footsteps, so the idea that he might have originated these himself seems unlikely.
The story of the discovery was an overnight sensation and the volume, now known as The Lost Book of Nostradamus, was much publicized. The Nostradamus Code (Destiny Books, 1998), by Ottavio Cesare Ramotti, claimed that the images related directly to the Centuries and that with them the key to a more accurate understanding of the prophecies could be extracted. This was followed in 2007 by a History Channel documentary, The Lost Book of Nostradamus, in which even more extravagant claims were made. Since then, the subject of The Lost Book has become a frequent topic on websites ranging from the intriguing to the ridiculous.
None of the writers or film makers made more than a passing reference to a fact that leapt out from the pages of The Lost Book the first time we saw a selection of the images—that many of the paintings reflect the symbolism of the tarot. Once we began to examine the available pictures in detail, we became ever more convinced that what we were seeing was a series of visual glyphs which would, once completed, have formed the basis of a tarot designed by Nostradamus himself.
The Lost Tarot
A variety of claims have been made for the origins of tarot. Some have suggested that its beginnings date back as far as ancient Egypt, or to the Templars, or to the Gypsies—but most experts now see this most popular of all predictive systems as beginning some time in the late Middle Ages, growing out of the older practice of cartomancy, the reading of fortunes with playing cards. Of one thing there is no doubt: tarot cards were all the rage during the period in which Nostradamus lived, so it’s quite possible that he considered making his own set. And, if so, what more likely scenario is there than that he should have drawn upon his own visionary skills to create what would have been a unique system, combining the archetypes of the predictive tarot with his own prophetic gifts.
Once we began to look into the imagery of The Lost Book, we found that not only were there a number of pictures which exactly matched those of the basic tarot archetypes (the Burning Tower, the Hermit, the Wheel of Fortune, and the Fool, to name but four), but that the remaining series of paintings contained, hidden within them, references to many more. We became increasingly convinced that we were looking at an incomplete set of images destined to be become a tarot—a Nostradamus tarot.
Tarot and Nostradamus
Did Nostradamus begin to create a tarot deck based on his visionary insights? We became convinced that he did, but that he was prevented from completing it by death, and that the images he had begun to prepare languished for many years and were consistently misunderstood as something they were not.
With increasing excitement, we began to research the deeper meanings of The Lost Book, and very quickly found that we had a complete set of the Major Arcana, and many of the Minors. After several months of intense work, we had in place a full deck of seventy-eight cards, all of which drew upon the paintings from The Lost Book. In short, we had succeeded in completing the work begun by Nostradamus himself, to create The Lost Tarot of Nostradamus.
Throughout the work, we chose to accept, in the broadest terms, that Nostradamus was a genuine seer and that his collections of prophecies have a measure of validity. This doesn’t mean that we accept the wilder interpretations, especially those which have been used recently to suggest the imminent end of the world! However, because of the nature of The Lost Tarot of Nostradamus, such questions are less important than is normally the case, because we’re not treating Nostradamus’ work as prophetic, but as predictive—a very different thing. Questions concerning the validity or otherwise of the Centuries may be left aside for the moment—though we will later suggest a way in which the quatrains can be utilized to support or augment the readings created by the tarot. Nostradamus’ writings have always been used to suggest events ranging from the historic to the cosmic—they have never been used to interpret personal dilemmas. That has been left to the tarot. Now, for the first time, these two powerful predictive systems are brought together, as they were always intended to be, as The Lost Tarot of Nostradamus.
Reinterpreting the Images
When we first looked at some of the images from the VE 307 Vaticinia Michaelis Nostradami manuscript, the first thing that went through our minds was how much tarot imagery was present. Pictures such as “the Wheel of Fortune” and “the Burning Tower” are instantly recognizable, others less so; while some are more alchemical and obscure. Indeed, the manuscript could more accurately be described as a notebook of sketches for a tarot, plus some other things. However, enough of the imagery from the tarot we are familiar with today was present in this amazing sketchbook to excite us and give us the resolve to somehow complete this lost work by one of history’s greatest prophets.
Religious imagery
There are a wealth of popes in many of the drawings. They people the Major Arcana especially, where we are used to seeing other figures. Many are of a heretical nature more redolent of the anti-Catholic demonization campaigns of the Reformation. Undoubtedly there are many influences coming together in the drawings: imagery from the so-called “Prophecies of the Popes,” alchemical references, zodiacal and celestial images that are juxtaposed with the imagery of the tarot. The most prevalent imagery is, of course, rooted in the world of the Roman Catholic Church of the late Renaissance, but the most interesting aspect is the juxtaposition of an esoteric understanding with an orthodox one, as well as the undeniable presence of an anti-cleric streak.
The symbolism within the imagery of The Lost Book is remarkably consistent. It is also very ecclesiastical. Inevitably so, when one considers when, and for whom, it was produced. There are, thus, many papal figures, which may be seen not only as representing the Supreme Pontiff himself but also the power of the Holy See in Rome. Whatever its shortcomings, the Vatican was perceived as a gateway to the Kingdom of Heaven—hence the proliferation of keys, which represent the Keys of Peter, the actual keys to the realm of Heaven, as well as papal crowns (often set above the kingly), which are intended as a reminder of the power of the Church.
No one is in full agreement about the symbolism of the mighty Triple Crown, which shows up a great deal in The Lost Book. Popes have worn this tiara since the Middle Ages, if not sooner, and for some it represents the threefold authority of the Church throughout the cosmos. The crowning of the pontiff is still accompanied by the words:
Receive the tiara adorned with three crowns and know that thou art Father of Princes and Kings, Ruler of the World, Vicar of Our Savior Jesus Christ in earth, to whom is honor and glory in the ages of ages.
In addition to these powerful symbols, a veritable bestiary of creatures, both natural and supernatural, throng the book. Doves, eagles, snakes, lions, sheep, and bears rub shoulders with unicorns, dragons, and serpents.
All these are open to ecclesiastic interpretation. Serpents mean