Originally posted by wookieerancher:

The picture that Bain has taped over on page 19 of The Guide of Bain is "Fall of the Giants" by Salvator Rosa.

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/24.63.1829

Not only is that old news, but it is mentioned in the post above yours, at least make some effort to not repeat information

The Death tarot card has the roman numeral XIII, could be the reason it is there. This art was found online somewhere, so it does exist out of the game, but I can't find the link.

I know there are a few theories for the images in the guide including: the life of Cagliostro illustrated, relations to things in-game and the Ninth Gate similarity (three-letter engravings)

I had a little theory that the images in the Guide of Bain (Cagliostro) were all based on Tarot cards (there are MANY decks - I used mainly Rider-Waite[en.wikipedia.org]). I know Tarot is highly ambiguous, therefore links can be made easily. Although holding no direct significance it may help to see the differences in the images compared to the cards as a basis for decoding any secret that may be present (e.g. death in the seventh image is playing chess, not present on any Death tarot cards).

When I looked at the images, their tarot links and then the pages they reside on it seemed that the images just described the pages that followed in the guide (e.g. third image = the tower = breaking down long established patterns and assumptions from previous experience and read the following pages on successful heisting).

• First image (Codex Raptus)[i.imgur.com] = Judgement XX[i.imgur.com] – resurrection of thievery?
  
  
• Second image (The Criminal Net-Work)[i.imgur.com] = The Fool[i.imgur.com] (no number in Roman numerals, zero was not used in Roman numbering) – start of the journey
  
  
• Third image (Strategies of the Successful Heist)[i.imgur.com] = The Tower XVI[i.imgur.com] – breaking down long established patterns and assumptions that were taken for granted
  
  
• Fourth image (Tools of the Trade)[i.imgur.com] = Wheel of Fortune X[i.imgur.com] – external acts of chance (luck), The Sun XIX[i.imgur.com] – healing/safeness/protection/recovery, The Moon XVIII[i.imgur.com] – renewal/immortality. Side note: Pump drill = our drill a key tool
  
  
• ASIDE: Fall of giants image[i.imgur.com] in between stuck-in pages = Resembles fall of justice, "he is raised aloft that he may be hurled down in more headlong ruin," is an inscription on the etching from The First Book Against Rufinus by Claudian Claudianus. The etching is made by Salvator Rosa.
  
  
• Fifth image (Appendices - gang/law enforcement/heist inside information)[i.imgur.com] = Justice XI/VIII[i.imgur.com] – obvious connection, The Star XVII[i.imgur.com] (water falling, stars and tree, not sure if correct) - life is just about to become easier and brighter
  
  
• Sixth image (mystery)[i.imgur.com] = The Magician I[i.imgur.com]
  
  
• Seventh image (mystery)[i.imgur.com] = Death XIII[i.imgur.com]
  
  
• Eighth image (mystery)[i.imgur.com] = The Hermit IX[i.imgur.com]
  
  
• Ninth image (mystery)[i.imgur.com] = ?

Other points:

• The horseshoe in death maybe symbolises omega, the end?
  
• Why does he spell mystery wrong on the text before the sixth image? I was thinking maybe mysteypages is an anagram as the words look like they are right next to each other.
  
  Thanks for reading

Originally posted by Umadbrah:

fyi. this is the second time ive seen crown of thorns brought up. look at the tree with the chest under it. in the leaves, crown. but someone brought it up in regards to the religious history with something else or other.
the other instance was not related to the ship however.

I think I know what you mean, there was a post in the secret guide for Payday 2 about the Tree of Life in the Kaballah called Sephirot. Keter is at the top which means crown and hence the image of the crown in a tree in the Guide of Bain could be the Keter in the Sephirot. It is greatly strengthened by the image provided (http://www.kabalove.org/images/CARDS/keter.jpg), but that image is not found near descriptions of the Sephirot or Keter, it is simply a tarot card called 'the crown'. Although the tarot cards are based on Kabbalistic tales, I can't find any descriptions linking the crown and the Sephirot.

I'm starting to think all of the images in Bain's Guide are just tarot cards. Which won't help us in anyway, going to do some research today.

Didn't know where to post, so I just thought I'd do it here. In the safehouse you have a painting of a ship above the crime.net laptop, which is also in other heists.

Full image: http://fast.mediamatic.nl/f/mngs/image/818/47944-950-576.jpg

The creator was Adriaen van Salm and it is called Oils and Fats. The cropped image in-game contains the ship called Hunter from a Dutch whaling fleet in 1703 on it's way to Amsterdam isle and the owner of the fleet was Gerrit Doornekroon. Doornekroon translates to 'crown of thorns', another biblical reference (resurrection painting is the other one), but of little significance. For more French connections, Napoleon had a reliquary commisioned for the crown of thorns http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4096/4909040501_ebd85bec55_o.jpg and put in Notre Dame.

Funny fact, 1703 was the year after the Dutch golden age of painting.

I don't know the significance of it being above the crime.net laptop along with the other 3 pictures.

Originally posted by Trippindicular:

418 is also code for "missing person" quite a few of the gang members in game have this tattoo. Possibly nothing, possibly relevent

I was wondering what the significance of 418 was in the background of the loading screens etc. thanks!

Originally posted by Hyborian King:

pump drills are for making fire

But also boring holes, someone suggested the idea of it being an ancient thermal drill. I like the analogy.

Originally posted by Castrate:

Originally posted by TreeBoar:

The fifth image (Tools of the Trade) has a pump drill in the center of it (http://i.imgur.com/w86rOVQ.png)

http://www.wildwoodsurvival.com/survival/fire/pumpdrill/pumpdrill01.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_drill#Pump_drill

Thank you

Have been trying to figure it out for ages, do you think at the Pumapunku temple complex they used pump drills?

The fifth image (Tools of the Trade) has a pump drill in the center of it (http://i.imgur.com/w86rOVQ.png)

http://www.wildwoodsurvival.com/survival/fire/pumpdrill/pumpdrill01.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_drill#Pump_drill