AtDTdA: (9) 253

[Jasper]

253 The Chums in Venice (continued)

Page 253
Pozzuoli
A city in the Province of Naples (Napoli) in the region of Campania. See 
Wikipedia.
*wiki*

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Tarocchi, or Tarot cards
Tarocchi (Italian, plural form of Tarocco), also known as Tarock 
(German-Austrian name), Tarot (French name) and similar names in other 
languages, is a specific form of playing card deck, which in its history 
was used for different trick-taking games and later for cartomantic 
interests and divination.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarocchi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarot_cards

Tarocci decks:
http://www.learntarot.com/vsdesc.htm
http://learntarot.com/cydesc.htm
http://www.levity.com/alchemy/mantegna.html
http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/cary-yale-visconti/
http://www.fredmartin.net/IMAGES/Tarot-selfp-imgs/DSCF0018.JPG

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"a line of eight, above that a line of four, then two, then one, to form 
a rude cusp"
Renata's cards are reminiscent of the /Tetractys/ on p. 220, but the 
size has increased by half:
1
2 3
4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

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number XVI, The Tower
The Tower (XVI) (most common modern name) is a Tarot trump card that has 
many different names, symbols, and meanings. The name and layout in its 
current form is a reference to the biblical story of the Tower of Babel, 
where God destroys a tower built by mankind to reach Heaven.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tower_%28Tarot_card%29

Divinatory meaning
Disruption. Conflict. Change. Sudden violent loss. Overthrow of an 
existing way of life. Major changes. Disruption of well worn routines. 
Ruin and disturbance. Dramatic upheaval. change of residence or job 
sometimes both at once. Widespread repercussions of actions. In the end, 
enlightenment and freedom.

http://www.paranormality.com/tarot_tower.shtml

See also:
http://www.tarothermit.com/tower.htm

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Major Arcana
22 cards of the Tarot deck, the Major Arcana are usually regarded by 
card readers as relating to matters of higher purpose or deep 
significance, as opposed to the Minor Arcana which relate to the 
everyday world and matters of immediate significance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_arcana
http://www.paranormality.com/tarot_cards_mjr_arcana.shtml

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Temperance
Temperance (Italian: La Temperanza) is a Major Arcana Tarot card, 
numbered VI or VII in the oldest Italian decks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperance_%28Tarot_card%29

Combination. Co-operation. Co-ordination. Innovation through 
combination. Diplomacy. Successful Negotiations. Maturity in dealing 
with certain matters. A placid, balanced temperament and good outlook. 
Meaning literally, temperance in the sense of harmony and balance. good 
management. An ability to adapt to changing circumstances.

http://www.paranormality.com/tarot_temperance.shtml

See also:
http://www.tarothermit.com/temperance.htm

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Fortitude
Courage. Self control. The virtue of Fortitude. The power of love. 
Control of passion against one's baser instincts. Determination. 
Generosity. Strength and power under control. Energy. Optimism. 
Generosity, resolve and reconciliation.

http://www.paranormality.com/tarot_strength.shtml

See also:
http://www.tarothermit.com/strength.htm

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In Protestant lands such as England [...] The Tower signifies the Church 
of Rome

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"The Tarocchi are much, much older."
Not at all! This is one of those ideas that rarely gets questioned, 
especially since some "interpreters" of the tarot claim ancient Egyptian 
origins. The actually only date back to the 15th century, as playing 
cards, and tarot divination was invented in the 19th century, with 
absolutely no historical precedent.

However, Aleister Crowley in his writings and the design of his own 
version of the tarot, the Thoth Deck, made a case for the Tarot unifying 
and being rooted in much older divination methods from Ancient Egypt to 
the Kabbalah to Greek astrology. Crowley's Golden Dawn gets a previous 
mention in ATD. Though work on the Thoth deck would not begin until 
1938, Crowley´s assignment of the Kabbalah's Sephiroth to the major 
arcana probably bears attention when considering the chapter structure 
of ATD: he called the correspondence "The Naples Arrangement" in honour 
of having worked it out there, and this passage's mention of Renata's 
business associate being in Naples at this moment is unlikely to be 
coincidence.

Surely a robust skepticism toward Crowley and his research methods is in 
order? Consider, for example, this "open letter" to tarot users—from a 
judicious scholar and believer, not a committed skeptic—making the point 
that if the cards embody images (of whatever origin) "speaking" to the 
reader or student, it isn't essential to press the further claim that 
they were invented by the god Thoth. The paintings lack a couple of 
millennia of "temporal bandwidth" but aren't necessarily voided of 
appeal by that, any more than Michelangelo's Pietà is a less-valid 
devotional object for having been sculpted 1500 years after the event.
*wiki*

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The Campanile in the Piazza

Old Campanile:
http://www.tate.org.uk/collection/N/N03/N03810_9.jpg
http://www.venice-art-tours.com/gtcamp.jpg
http://www.chrisbeetles.com/img/pictures/artists/Goodwin_Albert/K3180-b.jpg

Current Campanile
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~alandear/images/Travels/Venice%202005/Venice-1.jpg
http://gardkarlsen.com/italy/campanile_and_column.jpg

View from Campanile
http://gardkarlsen.com/italy/view_from_campanile.jpg

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"It's going to be hit by lightning? Two parties are going to fall out of 
it?"
"Some kind of lightning. Some kind of fall."

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sfumato
Refers to a well known painting method which blends so subtly the colors 
and tones that no perceptible transition is visible, as demonstrated by 
Leonardo da Vince's Mona Lisa. See Wikipedia. The context seems to imply 
smoke, then fumo instead should be used.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sfumato
*wiki*