The Emperor in 7 decks
The same card as 7 decks draw it, five and a half centuries apart. What stays the same is the card’s core; what changes is where a reading can find something new. The meanings are written for the Rider–Waite–Smith picture; the descriptions here are of each deck’s own.
Side by side
Choose any two decks and read the pictures against each other.
Pamela Colman Smith, 1909
A bearded ruler in red robes and full armour sits rigidly on a grey stone throne carved with rams' heads, an ankh sceptre in one hand and a golden orb in the other. Behind him rise bare orange mountains with a thin river at their base. There is nothing soft anywhere in the picture.
Lequart, Paris, 19th century
A bearded emperor in profile faces left, seated with one leg crossed over the other against a yellow throne. He wears a red and yellow crowned helmet, a striped tunic and a gold chain, and holds up a sceptre topped with an orb and cross. A shield with a yellow eagle stands by his feet. Numbered IIII, titled L'EMPEREUR.
Rider–Waite–Smith
Pamela Colman Smith, 1909
A bearded ruler in red robes and full armour sits rigidly on a grey stone throne carved with rams' heads, an ankh sceptre in one hand and a golden orb in the other. Behind him rise bare orange mountains with a thin river at their base. There is nothing soft anywhere in the picture.
Tarot de Marseille
Lequart, Paris, 19th century
A bearded emperor in profile faces left, seated with one leg crossed over the other against a yellow throne. He wears a red and yellow crowned helmet, a striped tunic and a gold chain, and holds up a sceptre topped with an orb and cross. A shield with a yellow eagle stands by his feet. Numbered IIII, titled L'EMPEREUR.
Tarot de Viéville
Jacques Viéville, c. 1650
Numbered IIII, a bearded ruler sits in profile facing left, wearing a crown over a wide brimmed hat and a red tunic with a patterned cloak. He holds an orb and cross sceptre, and a yellow shield with a black eagle leans against his seat.
Visconti-Sforza
Bonifacio Bembo, c. 1450
An old man with long white hair and beard sits in a dark gold robe with a blue mantle, a black eagle on his hat. He holds a sceptre in his right hand and raises his open left hand. His red shoes rest on a pale step, with a patch of green hedge to the right and tooled gold behind.
In the Visconti-Sforza deck the number cards show only their suit symbols, and the trumps are unnamed and unnumbered.
Sola Busca
c. 1491
A soldier in a winged helmet, red tunic and purple skirt strides past a twisted dead tree, holding a dark, discoloured shield and a red banner on a pole. A sword hilt shows at his side. The name MARIO runs along the bottom and the numeral IIII stands at the right.
Sola Busca trumps are named figures matched to the standard trumps by number only.
Oswald Wirth
Oswald Wirth, 1889
A bearded ruler in profile sits on a stone cube carved with an eagle, one leg crossed over the other. He wears a red and gold helmet-crown and armour, holds a fleur-de-lis sceptre, and cradles an orb topped with a cross against a breastplate showing small sun and moon faces. A red flower grows at the left. Below are a cross-shaped numeral 4, L'EMPEREUR and the Hebrew letter daleth.
Soimoi
Mike Koz, 2025
A stern man in a long black coat over a kimono stands squarely facing out, holding a folded gold fan marked with a red seal. Behind him hangs a gold screen painted with a pine tree, a red sun and a grid of lines like a street map. Two stone guardian lion-dogs sit on plinths either side, and strips of red and teal light frame the night skyline.