Western Tarot symbolism
Four of Cups
The description gives a young man under a tree three cups before him and a fourth offered from a cloud. It interprets his expression as discontent and finds no consolation in the new gift. Novelty, instruction and new relations occur reversed in the main list. The additional list reduces the upright card to contrarieties and gives presentiment reversed, introducing a different emphasis.
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In the sources
The card account
LiteraryThe description gives a young man under a tree three cups before him and a fourth offered from a cloud. It interprets his expression as discontent and finds no consolation in the new gift.
Comparing the lists
LiteraryNovelty, instruction and new relations occur reversed in the main list. The additional list reduces the upright card to contrarieties and gives presentiment reversed, introducing a different emphasis.
Context & interpretation
The active library scan carries L. W. de Laurence’s name and reproduces material associated with A. E. Waite’s Tarot exposition. This entry follows that supplied edition’s card prose and supplementary lists. Historical divinatory assignments and period character labels are distinguished from the pictured symbolism and from independently supported judgements about people or future events.
Original passages
Source 1
The Illustrated Key to the Tarot: The Veil of Divination
an arm issuing from a cloud offers him another cup. His expression notwithstanding is one of discontent with his environment. Divinatory Meanings: Weariness, disgust, aversion, imaginaryOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: The Illustrated Key to the Tarot, supplied de Laurence edition; card description, active reader leaf 116
Exact supplied-edition extracted passage actually read; whitespace-normalised quotation anchor and original-leaf mapping checked. Image descriptions attributed to printed prose; no new full-plate visual inspection asserted.
- Edition
- IMJ-0149-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0149-E001-P0116
- Original scan leaf
- 122
- Recorded leaf number
- 122
- Current Reader position
- 116
- Reader verification
- Matches the reviewed Reader
Source 2
The Illustrated Key to the Tarot: The Veil of Divination
Four.—Contrarieties. Reversed: Presentiment. Three.—Unexpected advancement for a military man. Reversed: Consolation, cure, end of the business. Tivo.—Favorable in things of pleasure and business, as well asOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: The Illustrated Key to the Tarot, supplied de Laurence edition; additional meanings, active reader leaf 151
Exact supplied-edition extracted passage actually read; whitespace-normalised quotation anchor and original-leaf mapping checked. Image descriptions attributed to printed prose; no new full-plate visual inspection asserted.
- Edition
- IMJ-0149-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0149-E001-P0151
- Original scan leaf
- 157
- Recorded leaf number
- 157
- Current Reader position
- 151
- Reader verification
- Matches the reviewed Reader
Illustrations
Continue exploring
Ace of Cups
A cloud-borne cup, water and a descending sacramental emblem give this Ace several symbolic layers.
Shared source pageEight of Cups
A departing figure gives the Eight an image of leaving an earlier concern behind.
Shared source pageEight of Swords
A bound figure surrounded by swords is expressly described as temporarily confined.
Shared source pageFive of Cups
Three fallen cups and two remaining upright make loss and remainder part of one composition.