Before Tarot

Tarot cards first appeared in Italy in the 1430s, where they were known as "carte da trionfi", or "cards of triumph". These cards were used for playing a game similar to modern bridge, known as "tarocchi". The tarot was created from a standard deck of playing cards by adding twenty-one specially illustrated cards (“trionfi”, or “triumphs”) and an odd card (“il matto”, or “the fool”). Despite common belief, the Fool card is not related to the origins of the modern Jester card. The game spread across Europe, finding popularity in the courts of Milan, Ferrara, Florence, and Bologna. One of the earliest known tarot decks is the Visconti-Sforza tarot. These early decks were richly decorated and often commissioned by wealthy patrons.

The transition of tarot cards from playing cards to tools of divination and mysticism began later, around the 18th century. In France, tarot's association with mysticism was popularized by French occultists who believed the cards had ancient Egyptian roots. Jean-Baptiste Alliette, also known as Etteilla, published one of the first books on tarot divination in 1785, associating tarot with ancient Egyptian lore. He suggested that tarot cards held secrets of ancient wisdom. This speculative theory was further fueled by Antoine Court de Gébelin, a French clergyman, in his 1781 book, where he linked tarot cards to the mysteries of Isis and Thoth, Egyptian deities. However, the historical evidence supporting these claims is lacking.