L’hermite is really about… abbot Suger (cir. 1081- 1151). He is seen here with a lantern, Lucerna in Latin. Suger’s basilica is named Saint-Denis. But the basilica’s other name in the XIIth century was… Lucerna ! So, on the card here, we see the good abbot, creator of Tarot and basilica builder extraordinaire, with a symbol of his masterpiece. The basilica was called a lantern because of the use of stained windows, a technical innovation at the times. These stained windows allowed the light to go inside the church in a spectacular fashion.
They still do. Pay a visit next time you are in Paris ! La Ville Lumière and Saint-Denis are a must for Tarot history buffs.
By the way… This gentleman decodes as 90 or 9 , IX. The word Hermit in French is Ermite. Suger added a H at the beginning, for coding purposes. So we have L’hermite and not L’ermite.
