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 boast 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. They are also known as picture cards, or until the e ...

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

tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

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

trump Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. T ...

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

Filippo Maria Visconti Filippo Maria Visconti (3 September 1392 – 13 August 1447)

Duke of Milan The following is a list of rulers of Milan from the 13th century to 1814, after which it was incorporated into the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia by the Congress of Vienna. Before elevation to duchy Until 1259, Milan was a free commune that elect ...

, 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'A ...

. 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. They acquired the Duchy of Milan following the extinction of the Visconti family in the mid-15th century, Sforza rule ending in Milan with the death of the last mem ...

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, formerly the Pierpont Morgan Library, is a museum and research library in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It is situated at 225 Madison Avenue, between 36th Street to the south and 37th S ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

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 collect ...

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

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...

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

Death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

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 Am ...

, 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 milli ...

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 they have ...

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, b ...

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 ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

in 1900.

Robert M. Place Robert M. Place (born 1947) is an American artist and author known for his work on tarot history, symbolism, and divination. Work as an artist Place has worked since the 1970s as a sculptor, jeweler and illustrator. His sculpture has been exhib ...

. ''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 ''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 Brescia in 1420. He was ...

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