The Visconti-Sforza Tarot is used collectively to refer to incomplete sets of approximately 15 decks from the middle of the 15th century, now located in various museums, libraries, and private collections around the world. No complete deck has survived; rather, some collections have a few

face card In a deck of playing cards, the term face card (US) or court card (British and US), and sometimes royalty, is generally used to describe a card that depicts a person as opposed to the pip cards. In a standard 52-card pack of the English pattern, ...

s, while some consist of a single card. They are the oldest surviving

tarot Tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a set of playing cards used in tarot games and in fortune-telling or divination. From at least the mid-15th century, the tarot was used to play t ...

cards and date back to a period when tarot was still called Trionfi ("triumphs" i.e.

trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

) cards, and used for everyday playing. They were commissioned by

Filippo Maria Visconti Filippo Maria Visconti (3 September 1392 – 13 August 1447) was the duke of Duchy of Milan, Milan from 1412 to 1447. Reports stated that he was "paranoid", but "shrewd as a ruler." He went to war in the 1420s with Romagna, Republic of Florenc ...

Duke of Milan Milan was ruled by dukes from the 13th century to 1814, after which it was incorporated into the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia by the Congress of Vienna. List of dukes of Milan House of Visconti In 1395, Gian Galeazzo Visconti was titled Duke ...

, and by his successor and son-in-law

Francesco Sforza Francesco I Sforza (; 23 July 1401 – 8 March 1466) was an Italian condottiero who founded the Sforza dynasty in the duchy of Milan, ruling as its (fourth) duke from 1450 until his death. In the 1420s, he participated in the War of L'Aqui ...

. They had a significant impact on the visual composition, card numbering and interpretation of modern decks.

Overview

The surviving cards are of particular historical interest because of the beauty and detail of the design, which was often executed in precious materials and often reproduce members of the

Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia from ...

and

Sforza The House of Sforza () was a ruling family of Renaissance Italy, based in Milan. Sforza rule began with the family's acquisition of the Duchy of Milan following the extinction of the Visconti of Milan, Visconti family in the mid-15th century and ...

families in period garments and settings. Consequently, the cards also offer a glimpse of nobiliary life in Renaissance Milan, which the Visconti called home since the 13th century. The three most famous sets are discussed in more detail below.

Pierpont Morgan Bergamo

This deck, also known as ''Colleoni-Baglioni'' and ''Francesco Sforza'', was produced around 1451. Originally composed of 78 cards, it now contains 74, i.e. 20 trumps, 15 face cards, and 39 pip cards. The

Morgan Library & Museum The Morgan Library & Museum (originally known as the Pierpont Morgan Library and colloquially known the Morgan) is a museum and research library in New York City, New York, U.S. Completed in 1906 as the private library of the banker J. P. Morg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

has 35, the

Accademia Carrara The Accademia Carrara, (), officially Accademia Carrara di Belle Arti di Bergamo, is an art gallery and an academy of fine arts in Bergamo, in Lombardy in northern Italy. The art gallery was established in about 1780 by , a Bergamasco collecto ...

has 26 in its catalogue, while the remaining 13 are in the private collection of the Colleoni family in

Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...

. Trumps and face cards have a gilt background, while the pip cards are cream-coloured with a flower and vine motif. The two missing trumps are the ''Devil'' and the ''Tower''. Modern published reproductions of this deck usually contain attempted reconstructions of missing cards. The figures on the suit of ''bastoni'' wear silver pleated garments and carry a long staff; a large vessel tops either end except for the King, whose staff has a finial only at the top. Those on the suit of ''cups'' wear gold garments, embellished by the heraldic device of sun and rays; each figure holds a large chalice, as is often the case with the suit. The suit of ''spades'' shows figures dressed in full armour, carrying a large sword. Curiously, the characters represented on ''denari'' wear garments decorated with blue ribbons wound around circular suns. File:Bembo-Visconti-tarot-arcanum-fool.jpg, The fool File:Dama di spade.jpg, The Empress File:Re di spade.jpg,

The Emperor ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The' ...

Visconti-Sforza
Tarot Meditations File:Visconti-Sforza tarot deck. Death.jpg,

Death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

File:Dama a cavallo.jpg, Knight of cups File:Sette di denari.jpg, Seven of ''denari''

Cary-Yale

Named after the

Cary Collection of Playing Cards The Cary Collection of Playing Cards, held at the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library of Yale University in the United States, is one of the most significant assemblages of materials relating to playing cards and related ephemera in North A ...

, absorbed into the

Yale University Library The Yale University Library is the library system of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Originating in 1701 with the gift of several dozen books to a new “Collegiate School," the library's collection now contains approximately 14.9 m ...

in 1967, it is also known as the ''Visconti di Modrone'' set, and has been dated back to around 1466. Some scholars have, conversely, suggested this may be in fact the oldest of sets, perhaps commissioned by Filippo Maria Visconti at the onset of the project. 67 cards (11 trumps, 17 face cards and 39 pip cards) have survived, which has led to the (disputed) suggestion that, given the distribution of the Pierpont Morgan deck, the total number of cards when this set was produced should have amounted to 86. In the 2007 book "The History of the Tarot", scholar Giordano Berti proposes that the deck was produced between 1442 and 1447, because the ''denari'' (coin) cards bear the recto and verso of the golden florin coined by F. M. Visconti in 1442 and withdrawn from circulation at his death, in 1447. The Cary-Yale is the only historical Western deck with six ranks of face cards, as the "Damsel" and the "Lady on horse" supplement the traditional King, Queen, Knight and Jack. Their ranks can be determined by their positions: standing, mounted on a horse, or enthroned. The trumps also contain the three

theological virtues Theological virtues are virtues associated in Christian theology and philosophy with salvation resulting from the grace of God. Virtues are traits or qualities which dispose one to conduct oneself in a morally good manner. Traditionally the theolo ...

which appear only here and in

Minchiate Minchiate is an early 16th-century card game, originating in Florence, Italy. It is no longer widely played. ''Minchiate'' can also refer to the special deck of 97 playing cards used in the game. The deck is closely related to the tarot cards, but ...

decks. All trump cards have a gilt background, while the pip cards have a silver one. File:Cary-Yale deck - four of coins - detail.jpg, Detail from the four of ''denari'' File:Cary-Yale Tarot deck - Damsel of Swords.jpg, Damsel of swords File:Cary-Yale Tarot deck - Horsewoman of Coins.jpg, Mounted lady of ''denari'' File:Cary-Yale Tarot deck - Faith.jpg, Faith File:Cary-Yale Tarot deck - Hope.jpg, Hope File:Cary-Yale Tarot deck - Charity.jpg, Charity File:Cary-Yale Tarot deck - Death.jpg, Death

Brera-Brambilla

This set is named after Giovanni Brambilla, who acquired the cards in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

in 1900. Robert M. Place. ''The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination'', Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, 2005, , , pages 16 ff. Since 1971 the deck has been in the catalogue of the

Brera Gallery The Pinacoteca di Brera ("Brera Art Gallery") is the main public gallery for paintings in Milan, Italy. It contains one of the foremost collections of Italian paintings from the 13th to the 20th century, an outgrowth of the cultural program of ...

in Milan. Apparently commissioned to

Bonifacio Bembo image:Francesco Sforza.jpg, ''Portrait of Francesco Sforza''. ca. 1460. Tempera on panel, 40 x 31 cm. Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan. Bonifacio Bembo, also called Bonfazio Bembo, or simply just Bembo, was a north Italian Renaissance artist born ...

in 1463, it now consists of 48 cards with only two trumps - the Emperor and the Wheel of Fortune. All face cards have a gilt background, while the pip cards have a silver one. The seven remaining face cards are: Knight and Jack of ''cups''; Knight and Jack of ''denari''; Knight, Jack and Queen of ''bastoni''. Almost all pip cards have survived, as this set is only missing the four of ''denari''. File:Bonifacio bembo, fante di coppe.jpg, Jack of cups File:Bonifacio bembo, cavaliere di coppe.jpg, Knight of cups File:Bonifacio bembo, regina di spade.jpg, Queen of batons

References

External links