The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
Pamela Colman Smith
The artist who designed the images of the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot, and whose innovation made the deck what it is.
- Dates
- 1878 – 1951
- Dating
- documented dates
The life
She worked under Waite's direction.
Place in the tradition
Her great innovation was to give virtually all the Minor Arcana fully illustrated scenes, making the deck exceptionally suited to intuitive reading. Every scene-illustrated pip deck since descends from that decision.
a note on the record
History and later legend
The deck is routinely called the Rider–Waite, which credits the publisher and the director and omits the person who drew it.
the written record
Principal works
-
1909
The Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot
Images designed by Pamela Colman Smith under Waite's direction. Probably the most influential Tarot design in modern history.