Lore of Thirteen

All Things Thirteen

Cardinal: Thirteen
Hindu-Arabic: 13
Roman: XIII
13 has no divisors

Words of Thirteen
Roman words tredecim, tertius decimus

Time and Holiday Associations:

Friday 13 – a day of bad luck

Science, Technology, Measurement:

Baker’s dozen
Aluminum (Al)thirteen element in periodic table

Biblical Associations:

Genesis 14: And it came to pass, in the days of Amraphel, king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam and Tiday king of antions; 2. That these made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and king of Bela which is Zoar. 3. All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea. 4 For twelve years they had been subject to Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
Genesis 17:25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen years of, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
Numbers 29:13 And ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord; thirteen young bullocks, two rams and fourteen lambs of the first year; they shall be without blemish. 14 And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three thenth deals unto every bullock of the thirteen bullocks, two tenth deals to each ram of the two rams.
Joshua 19:6 …thirteen towns and their villages; Joshua 21:4...thirteen cities. Joshua 21:6...thirteen cities.
Joshua 21:19 All the cities of the children of Aaron the priests, were thirteen cities with their pasturelands.Joshua 21:33 …thirteen cities with their pasturelands.
1 Kings 7:1 But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house.
1 Chronicles 6:60 And from the tribe of Benjamin they were given … All their cities throughout their families were thirteen cities. 1 Chronicles 6:62...thirteen cities. 1 Chronicles 24:13 (division of service in the temple of Arron's sons) the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab, 1 Chronicles 25:20 (David appointed those who should prophesy with musical instruments) the thirteenth to Shubael, his sons and relatives
Esther 3:12 Then were the king's scribes called on the thirteenth day of the first month, and there was written according to all that Haman had commanded unto the king's lieutenants, and to the governors that were over every people of every province according to the writing thereof, and to every people after their language; in the name of king Ahasuerus was it written, and sealed with the king's ring.13 And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to kill and to cause to perish all Jews, both young and old, women and little children-in one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar, and to the spoils of them for a prey. Esther 8:12 The day appointed for the Jews to do this in all the provinces of King Xerxes was the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar. Esther 9:1 Now in the twelfth month, that is the month Adar, on the thirteenth day of th esame, when the king's commandment and his devree drew near to be put in execution, in the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to have power over them, (though it was turned to the contrary, that the Jews had rule over them that hated them.) Esther 9:17 This happened on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth they rested and made it a day of feasting and joy. Esther 9:18 The Jews that were in Shushan assembled on the thirteenth day thereof, and on the fourteenth thereof, and on the fifteenth day of the same they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness.
Jeremiah 1:2 To who the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. Jeremiah 25:3 From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah even until this very day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD hath come unto me and I have spoken un, rising early and peaking; but ye have not hearkened.
Ezekiel 40:11 (part of a vision) Then he measured the width of the entrance to the gateway; it was ten cubits and its length was thirteen cubits.

Social, Family and Religious References:

Teenage years begin at thirteen
In Japan Friday the 13 is considered an exceptionally lucky day
Egyptians held 13 as a lucky number. It represents the final steps of the stages of earthly existence.
British sailors refuse to put to sea on the 13th of any month.
There are thirteen Buddhas in the Indian Pantheon
Twelve Disciples plus Jesus at Last Supper equals 13 guests
13 mystical discs surmount Chinese and Indian pagodas
The hilt of the sacred sword in the Temple of Atsusa in Japan is formed of thirteen objects of mystery
Thirteen is the sacred number of Mexican’s snake gods.
Friday, October 13, 1775, the Continental Congress voted in Philadelphia to fit out two sailing vessels, armed with ten carriage guns, as well as swivel guns, and manned by crews of eighty, and to send them out on a cruise of three months to intercept transports carrying munitions and stores to the British army in America. This was the original legislation out of which the Continental Navy grew and as such constitutes the birth certificate of the navy.

Tarot Divination: The death card represents transformation, change, destruction followed by renewal.

More Thirteen Associations:

13 American colonies
13 stripes on U.S. flag (original flag held 13 stars)
13 levels on pyramid of the U.S. National seal, on the reverse, 13 folds in ribbon on pyramid side; 13 stars on emblem over the eagle which holds olive branches with 13 leaves, and 13 olives and in the other claw, 13 arrows; eagle covered by shield with 13 strips and the mottos "e pluribus unum" and "annuit cœptis" each have 13 letters. Well, there were 13 coloinies!
Thirteen is widely used in the occult and is a fatalistic number of great power.
With the spread of the early Christian Church it became widely known that thirteen people dined at the last supper. By implication it would be unlucky for thirteen to eat together as one of their numbers might die before the year was out.
Thirteen represents transcendence from body existence to spiritual existence.
It is the number associated with necromancy.
Thirteen is the number of immortality (Christ plus 12 diciples)

Common usage:

Baker’s dozen
long dozen, devil’s dozen

Games, sports:

the King is thirteen card

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Sources Some information drawn from:
The Discoverers by Daniel J. Boorstin
The Numerology Workbook by Julia Line
Dartmouth, Number Symbolism in the Middle Ages at http://www.math.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.geometry/unit8/unit8.html
site offers much info on Christianity.

Thirteen’s Symbol, Lore & Legend

Thirteen * 13 * XIII

Numbers

All Things Thirteen