Papal Tiara

The Papal Tiara, also known as the Triple Tiara, in Latin as the 'Triregnum', or in Italian as the 'Triregno',{{ref|Triregno}} is the three-tiered jewelled papal crown of Byzantine and Persian origin that is the symbol of the papacy. Papal Tiaras were worn by all popes from Pope Clement V to Pope Paul VI, who was crowned in 1963. Pope Paul VI abandoned the use of his own tiara after the Second Vatican Council, symbolically laying it on the altar of St. Peter's Basilica, and donating its value to the poor. However, he did not abolish its use, explicitly requiring in his 1975 Apostolic Constitution Romano Pontifici Eligendo that his successor be crowned.

The triple tiara in Tarot

Medieval tarot cards contained a card showing a woman wearing a papal tiara and known as the Papess/High Priestess, and variously La Papessa or La Popessa. The meaning and symbolism of the card is uncertain. The crowned woman has variously been identified as Pope Joan (a supposed woman pope who featured in medieval myths — some cards also show a child; the Pope Joan myth had suggested that Joan, who had disguised herself as a man and been elected pope, had been found out when she gave birth during a papal procession), Mary, Mother of God, Cybele, Isis, or Venus. The use of a papal tiara worn by a woman in cards produced during the Protestant Reformation, and the use of apparent images of "Pope Joan" and her child, has been seen as a Protestant attempt to ridicule the papacy.

Related Topics:
Medieval - Tarot - Cards - La Papessa - Pope Joan - Myth - Mary, Mother of God - Cybele - Isis - Venus - Protestant Reformation

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The papal tiara however disappeared from later cards, who showed the Papess wearing more standard medieval female headgear. The tarot cards also contained a representation of the pope, in some cases crowned with a papal tiara.{{ref|tarot}}

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