The Real Origin: An Italian Noble Card Game
Many people believe Tarot originated in ancient Egypt or from mystical Eastern traditions, but this is a widespread myth unsupported by historical evidence. Historians agree that the deck was born in Northern Italy around the mid-15th century, originally called "tarocchi" or "trionfi" (meaning "triumph cards").
The oldest surviving Tarot deck is the Visconti-Sforza deck, hand-painted for the noble Visconti and Sforza families of Milan around 1440-1450. This was not a divination tool but a deck used for a card game with rules similar to modern bridge, popular among European nobility at social gatherings.
The original Tarot structure had 78 cards in two parts: 56 cards in four suits (Minor Arcana) resembling a standard playing card deck (Cups, Swords, Wands, Coins, later corresponding to Hearts, Spades, Clubs, Diamonds), and 22 special cards belonging to no suit, called "trionfi", the forerunners of today's Major Arcana. These special cards bore symbolic images like the King, the Pope, the Wheel of Fortune, and Death, reflecting Renaissance-era philosophy and religion.
From Parlor Game to Occult Tool
For over 300 years after its creation, Tarot remained simply a popular card game in Italy, France, and other European countries, entirely unrelated to divination or spirituality. The major turning point came in 1781, when French scholar Antoine Court de Gébelin published a work claiming Tarot contained secret Egyptian wisdom, despite having no archaeological or textual evidence to support this. Though long since debunked by historians, this theory spread widely and shaped perceptions of Tarot for the next two centuries.
Following this, French occultist Jean-Baptiste Alliette (known as Etteilla) became the first to design a Tarot deck specifically for divination and publish instructions on card spreads in the late 18th century. In the 19th century, English occult secret societies such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn further developed Tarot's symbolic system, linking it to astrology, Kabbalah, and other Western philosophical traditions.
The Rider-Waite-Smith Deck: A Turning Point for Modern Tarot
The single greatest influence on the Tarot imagery we know today comes from the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, published in 1909 in England. This deck was a collaboration between occultist Arthur Edward Waite and artist Pamela Colman Smith, published by Rider.
The breakthrough of this deck was that Pamela Colman Smith fully illustrated all 56 Minor Arcana cards with vivid narrative scenes, rather than simply depicting a repeated count of suit symbols as earlier decks had done. This allowed beginners to interpret card meanings through intuitive visual storytelling rather than memorizing hundreds of rules. Because of this accessibility, Rider-Waite-Smith became the most widely used Tarot deck in the world and the foundation for the majority of modern decks that followed, including many reimagined in contemporary artistic styles.
Tarot in Modern Life
Today, Tarot serves diverse purposes: a tool for introspection and personal growth, a means of entertainment-oriented divination and reflection, and an artistic subject explored by countless illustrators. Regardless of how one approaches it, understanding its true history, from an Italian noble card game to a global occult symbol, helps practitioners appreciate the cultural depth behind the deck.
