What Variety Of Tarot Cards Exist?

Tarot decks are a popular and versatile tool for divination, offering a variety of interpretations and themes. Traditional decks, such as the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot, consist of 78 cards divided into the Major Arcana (22 cards representing significant life themes) and the Minor Arcana (56 cards). These decks can come in various sizes, including oversized cards for full center stage or miniature sized decks for portability and smaller hands.

Tarot decks have evolved over the years, with two distinct types of tarot packs in circulation: those used for card games and those used for divination. Some older patterns, such as the Tarot de Marseille, originally intended for playing card games, are occasionally used for cartomancy. There are thousands of different tarot decks in existence, both traditional and modern.

The most popular types of tarot decks include Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. Fire decks follow a general trend, with Wands, rods, staffs, and big pieces of wood representing fire. Water decks represent cups, and Fire decks consist of wands, rods, staffs, and large pieces of wood representing water.

Tarot decks are typically composed of 78 cards, divided into two categories: the major arcana (The Fool through the World) and the minor arcana (56 cards), split into four suits. Each card has its own unique meaning, and all decks offer the same interpretations.

Over the years, many different decks were developed for various uses in the occult, with most of these still around today. Over 100 Tarot decks are available for users to experience, viewing every card in the deck, learning about its history, and purchasing if they like what they see.

In conclusion, tarot decks offer a diverse range of interpretations and themes, making them an essential tool for divination and divination. By exploring different deck sizes, types, and interpretations, readers can find the perfect Tarot deck for their needs and preferences.

What is the most popular tarot deck?

The Rider Waite Smith Tarot is a popular deck for tarot card reading, first published by the Rider Company in 1909. It was based on the instructions of academic and mystic A. E. Waite and illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith, both members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The deck has been published in numerous editions and inspired a wide array of variants and imitations. Over 100 million copies circulate across 20 countries.

The images in the deck are simple but feature abundant symbolism. Some imagery remains similar to earlier decks, but overall, the Waite-Smith card designs are substantially different from their predecessors. Christian imagery was removed from some cards and added to others, such as the “Papess” becoming the “High Priestess” and the “Lovers” card resembling naked Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The Minor Arcana is illustrated with allegorical scenes by Smith, unlike earlier decks.

Symbols and imagery in the deck were influenced by 19th-century magician and occultist Eliphas Levi and the teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. To accommodate astrological correspondences taught by the Golden Dawn, Waite introduced several innovations to the deck, such as changing the order of the Strength and Justice cards to correspond with Leo and Libra, and based the Lovers card on Italian tarot decks.

How many decks are there in tarot?

The modern tarot deck, based on the Venetian or Piedmontese tarot, consists of 78 cards divided into two groups: the major arcana (22 trumps) and the minor arcana (56 cards). The major arcana features pictures representing various forces, characters, virtues, and vices, numbered I through XXI. The cards are arranged in a series of order, from juggler to papess, empress to emperor, pope to lovers, chariot to justice, hermit to wheel of fortune, strength to death, temperance to devil, lightning-struck tower to star, moon to sun, last judgment to world, and the fool.

The minor arcana consists of four suits of 14 cards each, similar to modern playing cards. Each suit has 4 court cards (king, queen, knight, and jack) and 10 numbered cards, with the value progression in ascending order from ace to 10, then jack, knight, queen, and king.

What is the original tarot deck called?

Trionfi Tarot, also known as “triumph”, “tarocchi”, or “tarrock”, was an allegorical card game developed in Northern Italy during the 15th century for entertainment or artistic expression. It was commissioned from local artists by wealthy patrons. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the cards became a popular method of divination among various occultists, spiritualists, astrologers, and magical practitioners.

They were often associated with esoteric societies like the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn or practitioners of mystical systems like Kabbalah or numerology. Oracle decks, designed for divination and fortune-telling, often diverge from traditional tarot but are used for similar purposes.

Which is the strongest tarot card?

The Fool is a card in tarot games, not part of the Major Arcana. In most games, the Fool is independent of both plain suit cards and trump cards, and does not belong to either category. Tarot decks originally made for game playing do not assign a number to the Fool indicating its rank in the suit of trumps. The Fool is one of the most valuable cards in almost all tarot games.

In tarot games originating from Italy and France, the Fool has a unique role, sometimes called “the Excuse”. In these games, the player excuses the player from following suit or playing a trump. At the end of the trick, the player takes back the Fool and adds it to their trick pile, giving the trick’s winner the least valuable card from that same pile. If there are no cards to give in exchange, the Fool is worth one point less and an extra point is given to the trick-taker.

In a minor variant option of French tarot, a player dealt trump 1 but with no other trumps or the Fool can make trump 1 behave the same as the Fool. In official tournament rules, a player in this situation must declare their hand and force a redeal.

Is tarot ok for Christians?

The notion that tarot cards can exert control over one’s life is a pervasive one, yet there is a paucity of empirical evidence to substantiate this claim.

What types of tarot readings are there?

Tarot spreads are a powerful tool for gaining insights and guidance in various aspects of life. They come in various types, such as the One-Card Tarot Spread for focused questions, the Three-Card Tarot Spread for past, present, and future insights, the Path Spread, the Self-Actualization Pyramids Spread, and the Comic Strip Spread. These spreads can be used for one-card readings, in-depth Celtic Cross spreads, and those specifically designed for love and relationships.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced reader, tarot spreads offer an exciting way to gain insights and manifest a dazzling future. By developing intuition and trusting yourself, you can cleanse your deck for magical readings and explore your true potential.

What is the No 1 Tarot card?

The Magician, also known as The Magus or The Juggler, is the first trump or Major Arcana card in traditional tarot decks, used for game playing and divination. In the occult context, the trump cards are recontextualized as the Major Arcana and given complex esoteric meaning. In this context, the Magician is interpreted as the first numbered and second total card of the Major Arcana, succeeding the Fool. In French, Le Bateleur, also known as “the mountebank” or “sleight of hand artist”, is a practitioner of stage magic.

In Italian tradition, he is called Il Bagatto or Il Bagatello. The Mantegna Tarocchi image of the Magician is labeled Artixano, the Artisan, and is the second lowest in the series. 18th-century woodcuts of the Magician reflect earlier iconic representations and can be compared to free artistic renditions in 15th-century hand-painted tarots.

Are there different types of tarot decks?

Tarot, first known as trionfi and later as tarocchi or tarocks, is a pack of playing cards used in Europe since the mid-15th century for card games like Tarocchini. It has evolved into a family of games including German Grosstarok and modern games such as French Tarot and Austrian Königrufen. In the late 18th century, French occultists made elaborate claims about their history and meaning, leading to the emergence of custom decks for divination via tarot card reading and cartomancy. There are two distinct types of tarot packs in circulation: those used for card games and those used for divination.

Tarot has four suits that vary by region: French suits are used in western, central, and eastern Europe, and Latin suits in southern Europe. Each suit has 14 cards: ten pip cards numbering from one (or Ace) to ten; and four face cards: King, Queen, Knight, and Jack/Knave/Page. Additionally, the tarot has a separate 21-card trump suit and a single card known as the Fool. These tarot cards are still used throughout much of Europe to play conventional card games.

The use of tarot playing cards was once widespread across Europe except the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula. However, they later experienced a renaissance in some countries and regions. For example, French Tarot was largely confined to Provence in the 18th century but took off in the 1950s, becoming the second most popular card game in France. Tarock games like Königrufen have experienced significant growth in Austria, with international tournaments held with other nations.

What is the oldest Tarot deck?

The Visconti-Sforza Tarot, painted in the mid-15th century for the rulers of the Duchy of Milan, is the oldest surviving tarot cards. In 15th century Italy, the set of cards included in tarot packs, including trumps, was consistent, with two main exceptions. Some late 15th century decks, like the Sola Busca tarot and the Boiardo deck, had four suits, a fool, and 21 trumps, but none of the trumps match tarot ones. The Visconti di Mondrone pack, one of the Visconti-Sforza decks, originally had a Dame and a Maid in each suit, along with the standard King, Queen, Knight, and Jack.

The pack also included three trump cards representing the theological virtues of Faith, Hope, and Charity. Despite a Dominican preacher’s criticism of the evil inherent in playing cards, no routine condemnations of tarot were found during its early history.

What is the luckiest card in the tarot?

The Wheel of Fortune card, part of the Major Arcana, is a symbol of destiny, fortune, success, elevation, luck, and felicity. It is often depicted in a six- or eight-spoked wheel, often attended by an individual dressed in an Egyptian-style headdress. In some decks, such as the AG Müller, the wheel is also attended by an individual wearing a blindfold. The wheel is not always inscribed with any lettering, but the letters T-A-R-O (clockwise) or T-O-R-A (counter clockwise) can be found aligned against four of the spokes, which can also be interpreted as R-O-T-A, the Latin word meaning “wheel”.

In some decks, such as the Waite, the wheel is inscribed with additional alchemical symbols representing the four elements: Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. These emblems can also be seen on the Magician’s table in the Magician card (Card I).

What is the most basic tarot deck?

The Rider-Waite Smith deck is the most frequently recommended tarot deck for beginners.