The LWB says “Cadmus offeres a vase to Mercury”, but:

“Mercury” is obviously female
“Mercury” has no winged feet
“Mercury” has no caduceus, she has a shield and a spear – a warrior queen type

And – we have to find someone like this, a patroness to Cadmus. The following is from
about.com:
Since Cadmus had lost all his men to the dragon, he needed more. Athena advised Cadmus to sow half the teeth of the dragon if he wanted companions. He planted half the teeth and gave the rest to the goddess. From the spot where Cadmus had planted each tooth a fully armed man sprang up, immediately. The new warriors posed a clear danger to Cadmus, so, on the further advice of Athena, he threw stones among the warriors. Each man who was hit thought one of the other sown men (sparti) had hit him, so they started killing one another. Only five of the sparti survived, albeit wounded: Echion, Udaeus, Chthonius, Hyperenor and Pelorus.
The remaining teeth, which Cadmus had given to Athena, she saved for Jason.

So – presumably those are the dragon’s teeth in the vase? (Thanks yet again to Peter – for that, for pointing out that she is more often than not syncretised with Minerva, and for doing the serious digging here.)

Athena depicted on a coin of Attalus I, ruler of Pergamon —c. 200 BC.

Similar, no?

We have two Marriage cards here, so a lot of the when and where in this situation is dependent on a partner. Plus you have the male significator there. Other than that there’s a Trojan War card and an Unexpected, so there’s problems at the present time. I’m not saying you won’t move ever, that would be nuts. It’s just too hard to do it yourself right now.

Anyway, the cards are 8 of Clubs, 5 of Clubs, 7 of Hearts, Male Significator and the Queen of Spades.

And I don’t like the last card, it shows up when things fail. Osiris was killed by his brother, so there may be an element of sabotage. What I’m thinking is V
or somebody might try to help you move, but the plans will fall through. The man filling the oil lamp says not to give up hope, give it some time.

The 5 of Clubs and the 7 of Hearts show some bad blood, I’m guessing between men (Paris and Menelaus). There may be meetings and happy times on the surface but basically they don’t like each other very much and that’s going to come into play in this situation.

Your geomantic signs are:
RUBEUS (RED) Passion. Vice, temper. Sexuality. This is a warning for caution and a need for retreat. Negativity and upheaval. Stop and listen to your inner voice to find the correct path to follow. Good in all that is evil, and evil in all that is good.
Associations: Mobile, Mars, Scorpio, Tuesday, Water, Genitals and Reproductive System

And:
LAETITIA (JOY) Joy, laughter, happiness, good luck, delight, beauty, good health, harmony and peace of mind. Favourable for almost everything. A secret is revealed. Agreement.
Associations: Mobile, Jupiter, Pisces (Agrippa: Sagittarius), Thursday, Water, Feet

So it will end well eventually, it’s just going to take awhile. I think the time of the first disappointment is the time to really start putting a lot of effort into this, since Laetitia and the dead Osiris are on the same card. Hope this helps.

Sun Birds Moon Roads Heart Tower Coffin Key Park
Gent Flowers Ship House Letter Stork Book Snake Mountain
Mice Ring Anchor Clouds Whips Tree Cross Stars Bear
Lilies Dog Lady Scythe Fox Rider Clover Fish Child

Okay, love first! The Heart is knighting to the Tree AND it’s in the house of the Tree, also knighting to the Clouds, implying some kind of love sickness. By the Roads, you’re making your decisions out of love and that’s not always the way to go. Still, you’ve got the Moon by the Roads, showing that your heart generally steers you the right way. With the Heart reflecting the Fox, please try to be careful, people will try to take advantage of your good nature, so remember to think things through, as well. The Lady – Scythe – Fox line shows that you’re pretty good at seeing through a lie. The Tower shows some isolation and the possibility of lost love, then you have the Coffin after, with the drape pointing to the Tower. I think this is just a sign of things blowing hot and cold, fight, make up, etc. Beneath the Tower you have the Stork, again, change (for the better, though, usually), and it’s in a diagonal line to the Cross. A lot of this stuff just seems fated, not much you can do but hang on for the ride. Heart – House – Anchor is very good, love and stability in the house, that helps. No matter what problems arise, you’ve got strong foundations and pretty good luck. I think V is the Gentleman and if you look at the diagonal line, it goes Gent – Ring – Lady. So you’re kind of stuck with him. Razz That’s okay, he cares about you. You’ve got the Lilies in the house of the Gent, so, passion. Of course with the Lilies-Dog combo next to your card, there is another man, just a friend at this point, who is very interested, so V had better behave, lol. In summary: A bumpy road but worthwhile if you want it.

Money: You’ve got Stars – Fish! I wish my cards would come out like this! That’s good money coming, a decent amount, I’m going to put it in the thousands. Bear – Fish is “bearish” and abundant, while Fish – Child shows smaller amounts as well – lucky lucky lucky! Cross – Fish isn’t so good, though. It’s a tight squeeze, a narrow escape….maybe expenses? Fish – Clover gives you some luck, though. The Clover is fleeting, so if an opportunity arises, grab it. Clover – Cross shows that things will likely turn out okay. The Fish in the house of the Anchor say that money will come from work and investments. Fish knight to Book – more money that you don’t know about yet, Fish knight to Mountain – frozen assets, this money is tied up/in escrow? Keep your eyes open….

Now, same questions, Grand Jeu:

Love – the first two cards show you heeding what *someone* says and being very trusting. Generally this man is very straightforward and obliging, but his motivation was at least partially self-seeking. Do you see the lady carrying the bug on the lower left of the King of Diamonds? Think about why she is doing that. You can look a these cards and see advice, plans, gifts – all very good but watch the motive…this man was behaving like the pig on the lower right of the King of Diamonds, hanging around to see what the bird (you) drops. The adjoining illustration shows him all decked out like a fine gentleman. Oy, vey. And I think Chiron just shows that things are in shambles at present, but there is opportunity to transform them. We move to the next small picture of the person with one arm winged and the other weighted. There is a mix in this situation, good and bad, so I can see where you are hesitant to “throw the baby out with the bathwater”. Your next card shows news or a message coming very soon, if you haven’t gotten it already. It’s best to keep this quiet and watch Argus! Argus is the person who has a big mouth, who can make problems for you. See those things on his face? That’s not bad skin, those are eyes! All of this is tied to the “good-bad” relationship. So it might be best to avoid nosy people for awhile. Anubis is guarding some papers and telling you to keep a secret. And the secret appears to be a marriage proposal or something of that nature. In any case, this line ends well and the alchemist has achieved the Philosopher’s Stone. So things will work out….

Money – The three of Diamonds shows Castor and Pollux. In the myth the twins shared the same mother but had different fathers which meant that Pollux was immortal and Castor was mortal. When Castor died, Pollux asked Zeus to let him share his own immortality with his twin to keep them together and they were transformed into the constellation Gemini. So this is a card of things wanting to come together, but the situation us a little tricky. The next card is Laverna, theft, deceit, all those things you don’t want in a money spread. The small pictures are telling you to be especially careful close to home, people have been trying to be slick right under your nose. But this influence is passing new and we are coming to the 5 of Hearts. The person stealing from the drawer becomes the chained bird!

Negotiations are underway, as we see from the large illustration, and these should be profitable. I think the money situation could get much better very soon, but you will need to use care managing your finances, as we see from the wise old man on the King of Hearts. The final card of this line is the 9 of Clubs, Hercules battling the Hydra, and your small illustration shows a man selling dates. This is a card of business success, but not without stress or having to fight sometimes to maintain what you have won. No surprises there, but I’m happy it ends well.

Taken all together: a bumpy ride, but not without nice things along the way. You will prevail.

It can be very difficult to find any information at all about the flowers on this deck, and when you finally do, well, it’s usually bogus. Many sources list only one flower per card…

…but as you can see, there is more than one. Victorian flower language is a study in itself, but here is my favorite link for looking some of the meanings up.

And here is the list. I’ve left some of the French names for now, rather than give a bad translation. In time I hope to have all of them done.

King of Clubs – Plumbago, basil, poppy
Queen of Clubs – Organes sexuels, honeysuckle, rose of four seasons
Jack of Clubs – colorful carnation, anagallis, menispermum
10 of Clubs – Bromelia, rassella, tobacco
9 of Clubs – Anthoseros, hellebore, red clover
8 of Clubs – Organes sexuels
7 of Clubs – Castanea, salix, China rose
6 of Clubs – Taxus, rhus, geranium
5 of Clubs – Organes sexuels – Gallium, tilia
4 of Clubs – Red Wallflower, mesembryanthemum, theobroma
3 of Clubs – White lilacs, willow, saponaria
2 of Clubs – Wheat, melia, statice
Ace of Clubs – Tremella, marguerite, bell

King of Spades – Tulip, eliam, canna
Queen of Spades – Ruscus, polypodium, locust tree
Jack of Spades – Véronique, wallflower, periwinkle
10 of Spades – Saxifrage, flowers and fruits, berberis, garcinia
9 of Spades – Epilobium ; rose à cent feuilles, cornflower
8 of Spades – Orchis, taraspic, cardanus
7 of Spades – Oat, pione, rose bâtarde.
6 of Spades – Cotha, papaver, juniper
5 of Spades – Yellow carnation, raspberry, arum lily
4 of Spades – Sodum, sunflower, gossipium
3 of Spades – Cypress, box tree, laurel
2 of Spades – Sempervivum, ribes, melostoma
Ace of Spades – Paronichia, lycopodium, sweet pea

Source: cartomancien.com Merci beaucoup to my friend Peter for that one! And for the translators – much better than what I was using. You can see his Tarot boxes and some very nice items by his wife Christine here.

I cooked up a new oracle, too. This one is more portable, budget-conscious, and only takes a few hours to make. Here is the first set:

(This mottled set is already promised, but I have lots of gorgeous mesquite in the blush-brown tones pictured here, and I’ll be burning some more this evening.)

Comes with explanatory text by email. Only $28, includes shipping. Feel free to email me with any questions you may have! My email and paypal addies are the same:
fennario99@gmail.com

Thanks for looking!

ETA: Here is one without the mottling:

The spots, like the one on at the top of the “Y” Crossroads and the one under the Scythe, are natural markings on the wood. I like to work this into some of the pics, this one has a natural dark side to the Clouds.

The first card shows a move, in this case, of course, it’s a metaphor for change. The next card might be a little money coming in. It’s not a windfall, but it’s positive, so let’s hope. The third card is a relationship card. Someone I’m connected to somehow might have some influence in the matter, but for this draw, I’m more inclined to read it as things in pairs, two of something. Maybe two readings this weekend.

I’ll be back next week to let you know what happened! Have a great weekend, and if you party, party safe!

Just hold the cards up to a mirror. It’s that simple.

Here’s Ophiuchus:

And a mirror image of the Ace of Clubs:

Start with the two big stars on the right shoulder of Ophiuchus and see how it matches. Serpens is shown by the smaller stars on the card. Do you see it?

The constellations on this deck can be very confusing and there is a dearth of good information – many writers ignore them completely! Different sources will assign different constellations to the cards. Some of them might assign several to the same card! I can’t guarantee the accuracy of these, but they do look straightforward and user-friendly. They are from Le Livre du Grand Jeu de Mlle Lenormand by Jean Didier:

A of Clubs: Ophiucus
2 of Clubs: Altair
3 of Clubs: Les Hydrades
4 of Clubs: Cerbere
5 of Clubs:La Harpe et Georges
6 of Clubs: Arcturus
7 of Clubs: Orion
8 of Clubs: La Grande Ourse
9 of Clubs: Hercule
10 of Clubs: La Licorne
J of Clubs: Le Cheval
Q of Clubs: Les Pleiades
K of Clubs: La Gloire de Frederic*

A of Diamonds: Le Telescope
2 of Diamonds: Le Poissons
3 of Diamonds: Pollux
4 of Diamonds: Le Cygne
5 of Diamonds: Le Cameleon
6 of Diamonds: La Meduse (or possibly Medusa?)
7 of Diamonds: Le Vautour
8 of Diamonds: L’Abeille**
9 of Diamonds: Le Dauphin
10 of Diamonds: Le Petit Lion
J of Diamonds: Le Mat du Navire
Q of Diamonds: Le Dragon
K of Diamonds: Le Poisson Volant

A of Spades: Le Clocher
2 of Spades: Castor
3 of Spades: Le Petit Chien
4 of Spades: Le Poisson Austral
5 of Spades: La Dorade
6 of Spades: Le Serpent
7 of Spades: La Baleine
8 of Spades: Algol
9 of Spades: Alpha du Belier
10 of Spades: Le Renard
J of Spades: Persee
Q of Spades: La Croix du Sud
K of Spades: Ardens ou la Porte des Hommes

A of Hearts: La Voie Lactee
2 of Hearts: Le Bouvier
3 of Hearts: Pegase
4 of Hearts: Le Cygne
5 of Hearts: Le Lion
6 of Hearts: Le Belier
7 of Hearts: Le Sextant
8 of Hearts: Aldebaran
9 of Hearts: Regulus
10 of Hearts: La Coupe
J of Hearts: La Couronne Boreale
Q of Hearts: La Chevelure de Berenice
K of Hearts: Le Triangle

*Frederick’s Glory is an obsolete constellation by Lacerta.

** L’Abeille translates to “Bee”, but the constellation is now called Musca, the Southern Fly. They are one and the same. Thanks, Wood.

And merci beaucoup to Chanah for helping with all this!
And for this additional information:
Richard Hinckley Allen: Star Names — Their Lore and Meaning

In these cases, you would just read the illustrations, and not worry about the other things on the card. The illustrations carry the basic message. Once you’ve made yourself familiar with them, you don’t even have to remember the names of the all characters on the cards. Just familiarise yourself with what’s going on in the pictures. You can lay them out – POP! POP! POP! – and get your answer, just like with the simple decks.

The categories I talked about in my last post are also very good for getting information at a glance. Categories can be confusing, though, not only if you’re just learning, but also if you haven’t used the deck for awhile and your mind has become something less than a well-oiled machine where this deck is concerned.

Here is Capricorn, for instance:

But the 2 of Diamonds also shows a goat, and its category is The Unexpected:

Some of the Unexpected cards look like they could be Trojan War cards, and vice versa. There’s a potential for confusion here. So I’m going to give you a shortcut: mark your cards! Normally I wouldn’t recommend that, but it’s very practical in this case, and aesthetically it actually adds to the mystique of the deck, IMHO. It doesn’t make you any less of a reader – Mlle. Lenormand herself is said to have marked her cards with strange ciphers. Just a little mark in a spot where it won’t look ugly. Keep it tiny and neat, and do it on the bottom so that you can see it when you do those spreads with just the small illustrations showing.You can use a tiny dab of paint or colored nail polish if you’re into color coding – gold for the Golden Fleece, red for the Trojan War, etc., or you can just use letters. I used Z for Zodiac, B for Business, T for Trojan War, M for Marriage, and left the cards from the Unexpected category blank, since there’s so many of them. You can see a few here:

Happy reading!