La Fortune, from the playing cards (for quartets) "Costumes des Peuples Étrangers" 18th century

Editor: Here we have “La Fortune,” or Fortune, from a deck of playing cards titled “Costumes des Peuples Etrangers,” made in the 18th century. It's an engraving, etching and print on paper of an allegorical nude figure on top of a winged globe, holding a cornucopia and scales... The figure’s blindfolded, and draped in orange cloth, almost like ribbons. It gives me an uneasy feeling; something about that blindfold and the figure's precarious stance makes me think about the capriciousness of fate. What symbols or hidden meanings do you notice in this piece? Curator: It is fascinating how the artist uses these emblems to portray abstract concepts. The blindfold immediately speaks to the irrationality and blindness we associate with Fortune. But notice how Fortune is perched precariously on the globe itself, balanced yet off-balance on a world that never stands still. She doles out both abundance from her cornucopia and judgement with her scales. What do the implements of sword and bell hint to you? Editor: I'm not sure about the sword and the bell. Is the sword strength, but held by chance? And is the bell an ironic alarm? To say chance will bring fortune when we least expect? Curator: You're onto something, it does convey multiple aspects. The sword may represent power and the edge of fortune's fickle blade, both its gift and its danger. The bell signifies, perhaps, a moment of truth or warning amid uncertainty. What is curious to me is how the numerical sequence and phrase hints at divination… connecting this “game” to predicting our futures. Editor: Oh, I see that, 1-4=7 with "the truth pleases me well"! What seems like a parlor game opens into philosophical probing. I will definitely keep this in mind in future encounters. Curator: Yes, reflecting on symbolic vocabularies of the past enables us to be conversant in meanings across time.