Prophetical, Educational and Playing Cards

by Mrs. John King Van Rensselaer

“Mercurius was a celebrated god of antiquity, called Hermes by the Greeks. He was the messenger of the gods and of Jupiter in particular. He was the god of speech, of eloquence, the patron of orators, of merchants, and of all dishonest persons, particularly thieves, of travellers, and of shepherds. He also presided over highways and crossways, and conducted the souls of the dead to the world below, and it would be nearly impossible to discover anything about which this versatile god could not be consulted through his learned priests, who had been taught the gift of speech from him that they transmitted to their followers. The Egyptians ascribed to Hermes the invention of letters, and the Greeks accredited him with many other important improvements that made men’s lives happier or better, such as the invention of the lyre, as well as the regulation of commerce, and the improvement of gymnastic exercises, while, by a strange perversion the Greeks made Hermes the protector of thieves, when, in Egypt, he was the god of merchants, so that it may be possible that the crafty god favoured the person who first propitiated him or, perhaps, the highest bidder.”

Mercury was the son of Jupiter by the brightest of the Pleiades, Maia, herself the daughter of Atlas, King of Mauritania, and Pleione, one of the Oceanides, or ocean nymphs whose mother was Tethys, and father, Oceanus. Such distinguished ancestry may well have placed the ever-youthful Mercury among the presiding deities of Olympus, even if he had not inherited the mantle of the Egyptian god Thoth, and with it the ægis of the god of the Babylonians, Nebo, who was the arbiter of the fate of mankind.

His infancy was intrusted to the Seasons, who could not prevent his stealing the trident of Neptune, the girdle of Venus, the sword of Mars, and the sceptre of Jupiter, all of which are displayed on the old pip cards, the sword and sceptre being two of the pips, while the girdle of Venus encircles the Deuce of Money.

The ingenious god presented the lyre that he invented to Apollo, receiving in exchange the “golden three-leaved rod,” called by the poets Aurea virga. It was represented as a wand of laurel, or olive, with two dainty wings on one end, and entwined with two serpents, the whole emblematical of many things besides peace, or a flag of truce, for which it was generally used. This rod entwined with serpents is one of the most ancient symbols and is found on a vase discovered in Babylonia that is supposed to have been used 2350 B. C. Another device showed the staff wound with ropes tied after a peculiar fashion, and when so depicted the caduceus represented commerce and merchants, since the rope tied after a certain fashion was the token of the Phœnician traders. This is retained on the Ace of Sticks in the Tarot pack. When the caduceus was wound with stripes of red and white it represented surgeons, or the healing arts; and, as has been mentioned, is so displayed on barbers’ poles to-day. The stick wound in this way also represented birth, and, set before the door, was a token of Mercury’s recent visit carrying a babe from Juno to its parents. The caduceus served Mercury as a herald’s staff, and this name was sometimes applied to the white wand or rod that in time of war was regarded as a signal for peace.

The wings of Mercury typify the planet named for him, that is so fast that it completes its revolution around the sun in a little less than three months. He is connected with the old Israelitish legend, referred to in Ezekiel ix:2, where Nebo is one of the seven planets.

The important place given to the rod in the Bible must not be overlooked. It is closely connected with the arrow of primitive peoples, that was used not only for war or the chase, but serving also to ascertain the wishes of the gods, for when a bundle of arrows was cast to the ground from a quiver or the hand, according to certain well-known laws, they indicated the wishes of the divine power by the direction in which they fell. This is recalled in Jeremiah, in the story of Jonathan and David, besides in many other instances.

It was a natural sequence that Mercury, who had inherited the “tablet of fate” from Nebo of the Babylonians, should also have received the “wand of the magi” that, when cast before the Pharaoh by his wise men, was able to swallow the serpents that sprang from the rod of Moses. The rod, when used as a sceptre, has other and important significances, and is one of the chief signs of a ruler’s position and power.

Mercury was the most active and useful of all the gods, owing to his temperament, and no event or ceremony was undertaken without seeking his advice. He had many names under which his good offices were invoked, such as Argiphontes, or the slayer of Argus, when he represented warriors. Then he was called Chthonius, or “he who guides the dead”; when thus represented he is generally seated and is without sword, caduceus, or purse. Another name for him was Agoneus, the patron of gymnastic exercises, of commerce, and of executive ability.

Sometimes Mercury is represented in his birthday suit, at others with a chlamys or cloak enveloping him, the petasus or winged cap on his head, the talaria, or winged sandals, on his heels, bearing the caduceus aloft. Ancient representations of Mercury were simple wooden posts, the terminals carved with a rude head wearing a beard, which were the original signposts.

Professor Anthon says: “Hermes may in some degree be regarded as a personification of the Egyptian priesthood. It is in this sense, therefore, that he is regarded as the confidant of the gods, their messenger, the interpreter of their decrees, the genius who presides over science, the conductor of souls to the realms of bliss.”