A palm-sized visual history of tarot cards, from hand-painted Renaissance decks to the creations of modern artists like Salvador Dali. Originally used by northern Italian aristocrats in complex games resembling bridge, tarot cards became more popular with the spread of printing in the sixteenth century and were eventually used by Freemasons, fortune-tellers, and mystics to reveal hidden truths about the past, present, and future. More recently, artists have used the imagery and potency of tarot as a springboard for creativity. As a path to revelation or simply as a pastime, tarot is fascinating. A carefully curated selection of decks from the past six centuries - showing the chief turning points in their development - make this little book an indispensable guide to the history of tarot. AUTHOR: Christina Olsen is an art historian who wrote her Ph.D. thesis on the history of tarot cards. SELLING POINTS: Reflecting a surging interest in all things magical Nearly all books about tarot are how-to books. This is one of the only titles to trace the fascinating visual history of tarot cards, from the Italian Renaissance to modern decks by artists like Salvador Dali and Nikki de Saint Phalle. 275 colour illustrations

Author Biography

Christina Olsen, an art historian and museum director, wrote her PhD thesis on the history of tarot cards.