Tarot, or Tarocchi as it was originally called in Italy, is one of the oldest card games still played. The deck with which it is played was invented around 1440, probably in the city state of Ferrara in northern Italy. Contrary to popular beliefs it was not the predecessor of the deck of cards that we usually use nowadays, quite the opposite. Another popular widespread myth is that the deck was originally used for divination. That field of application did not originate until late 18th century. In spite of a large number of references during more than three centuries to Tarot in literature and art, there is not a single indication that it was used for cartomancy before 1781, or that it was in any way connected to the occult or the supernatural.

The man who is to the largest extent to blame for the dubious invention of divination, using Tarot cards, is the Swiss Antoine Court de Gébelin (1719 -1784). He had in an inspired moment "realized" that the symbols on the Tarot cards originated from the old Egyptian religion, and that the deck had been invented by egyptian priests in consultation with the god Thot and was a symbolic representation of his wisdom. The word "Tarot" was supposed to mean "the royal road", from "tar", 'road', and "ro", 'royal'. Neither of those words can be found in Wallis Budge's extensive Egyptian dictionary. Inspired by Gébelin, a man who called himself Etteilla (his real name was Alliette) wrote several books and pamphlets on the subject, further developping his "theories", and so the whole thing was set rolling.

Today, sadly enough, the Tarot deck is to the largest extent seen as a tool for divination, instead of as the thing it originally represents: a rich and fascinating tradition of card playing. It is a deplorable affair that sybils and occultists have laid their hands on, and monopolized this cultural heritage.

In spite of all this, I still think the symbols and images of the Tarot deck are fascinating, firing the imagination and through the years many an artist has been inspired by the Tarot deck, and the trump cards in particular. This has made these decks very interesting collector's items. Hundreds and hundreds of different designs can be found in an ever growing number. Below I will present the same card in 27 different Tarot decks, to show how differently the cards can be designed. The card shown is "The Magician" i.e. the lowest trump card.