A Brief History Of Tarot Card Readings

By Christopher Hill


Tarot cards originated as far back as 1440 in Italy with the original 22 cards of the Major Arcana when the first deck appeared. In most cases, the Italian decks were called "Visconti Trumps" and are often considered the forefathers of the decks which are now available. Whereas, readers often now use a number of different decks to gain as much insight out of tarot card readings as possible.

Rumor has it that these cards were originally designed and created for Nobles. Whereas, it was centuries later in which the cards once again became popular. It was at this point and time when tarot cards were first used as tools of divination.

Eventually, the Trumps became the standard playing cards among the Nobles. Before this time, those whom played the Trump cards in various games often had to decide whether to hold, discard or substitute other cards. Most nobles of the time saw the Tower, Devil and Death cards as being offensive, thus these cards were often discarded. For, it was believed that the souls of those playing such cards would be won by the Devil.

It was not so much the implied meaning of the cards but the imagery which led to this belief among religious zealots and leaders. In fact, at one point religious leaders attempted to banish the Trumps. A sermon provided by a Friar sometime in the mid-1400s suggested that the Trump cards were tied to the Devil and that the cards were created and named by the demon.

Even when using the cards for a simple game, the Friar suggested the devil was using the cards to win the souls of the people who played games with the Trump cards. As such, the sermon condemned the use of the cards whether for games or other purposes.

The rebirth of Tarot and the use of decks in divination is attributed to Antoine Court de Gebelin in the late 1700s. For, Antoine believed the cards to be of Egyptian origin which contained knowledge of a mystical nature. De Gabelin also believed the symbols were purposefully included in the Major Arcana, also known as the Trumps. Unlike the Friar, Antoine saw no association between the Devil and the art of tarot.

De Gebelin, at least in theory believed the cards were keys to the lost knowledge and wisdom of the Egyptians. It was much later when the Major Arcana began to evolve into decks revised and distributed by a number of secret societies that hopes of revealing this knowledge came to pass. Most likely, this led to modern decks which come with guidebooks which define the artwork and provide the meaning of each and every card.

In the beginning of tarot, regular playing cards were often used as a means of separating the suits. Whereas, later there were several decks which only used the Trumps or Major Arcana. Whereas, there are so many different creators and decks available now that it can often be difficult for readers to know which one to choose. While this is the case, as most readers believe cards should be a gift rather than purchased, the decision is often made by someone other than the reader.




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