Death (XIII) is the thirteenth trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks. It is used in Tarot, tarock and tarocchi games as well as in divination.
Description
The Death card commonly depicts a skeleton riding a horse. Surrounding it are dead and dying people from all classes, including kings, bishops and commoners. The skeleton carries a black standard emblazoned with a white flower. Some decks depict the Crashing Towers from The Moon with The Sun rising behind them in the background. Some decks, such as the Tarot of Marseilles, omit the name from the card.
Interpretation
A. E. Waite was a key figure in the development of modern Tarot interpretations. However, not all interpretations follow his model.[2]
Some frequent keywords used by tarot readers for the interpretation of Death are:
- Ending of a cycle——Loss——Conclusion——Sadness
- Transition into a new state——Psychological transformation
- Finishing up——Regeneration——Elimination of old patterns
- Being caught in the inescapable——Good-byes——Deep change