Comparing the data in the columns above, with the only exception of
the Fool card (or its
equivalent), it seems as if no trump has a matching subject and rank in all patterns. In
most cases, the subject remains the same but has a different position, or in fewer cases
a non-standard subject replaces a classic one, keeping its rank.
However, in reading the columns, attention should be payed to the type III
(southern) pattern, in which some positions appear shifted due to the particular
structure of the trump series: Bologna's tarot has four
Moors of equal rank,
which took the place of
the Pope, Popess, Emperor and
Empress;
although numerals appear only in modern decks, the first numbered subject after the
Moors
is
Love, marked 5 despite this card is actually the 6th! So, seen in a
column, all trumps following the
Moors seem to be one position lower than what they
really are, while many of them actually keep the same order as in the
Marseilles pattern.
This remark can be made also for the Sicilian tarot, in which an opening non-standard subject
(
Misery), lowest and numberless card, causes other following subjects to appear shifted:
also in this case,
the Trivial Performer bears number 1, though being the second
card. Disregarding the shift,
the Trivial Performer would be trump number 1 in all patterns.
In a similar way,
Death always has number 13. Also
the Star, the Moon and
the Sun keep their positions, although in type II
Justice outranks these
three cards.
Other subjects, instead, shift to higher or lower ranks, according to the
pattern they belong to. Their arrangements can be sometimes understood: for instance, in
type III all virtues appear grouped together, whereas in the Marseille pattern they are
separated from each others by two positions.
The difference between the same subject's rank in different patterns does not usually
exceed three or four positions. Only
Justice in type II has a very high and
almost anomalous rank.
ARCHAIC ORDERINGS
What is known today about the trump ordering in early tarots, whose ranking in most cases was not written on the cards, is largely based on literary sources in which the names of the trumps are mentioned. The oldest one is a collection of preaches (
Sermones de ludo cum aliis, "sermons about the game with dice") written by an anonymous monk sometime during the second half of the 1400s. Several others are known, most of which are poems and satires written during the following century. These lists of names reflect both the variability of the names which some subjects were known with in different parts of Italy, and the mismatching position of some subjects, whose ordering was left to the custom of the local players. One author, Pietro Aretino, wrote about the trumps in two distinct works (with a time interval of about twenty years), mentioning two different ordering of the trumps, and placing
the Fool at one end of the series first, then at the opposite end.
 |
In these lists we also find some interesting alternative names. A common one is the Hunchback for the Old Man a.k.a. Time; in some editions, he apparently did have a hunchback (picture on the left, from an uncut tarot sheet), which later may have turned into the Hermit's hood. In one of the lists this subject is replaced by the Carriage, curiously coexisting with the Chariot. Another source reorts the Traitor as Judah, after the biblical betrayal of Christ by apostle Judas Iscariot. The same source gives Lightning (a.k.a. the Tower) the curious name of the House of the Damned, whereas two others refer to this subject as the House of the Devil and the House of Pluto (Pluto himself, ruler of the infernal regions in ancient Roman mythology, is used in place of the Devil). What is strange in this archaic interpretation is that the Tarot of Marseille completely reversed the meaning of the subject, without changing its iconography. |
Lastly, several sources still feature
Justice in a very high position, consistent with the ordering used in the north-eastern area, i.e. pattern B (according to Dummett's classification), despite this scheme would have soon later died out.
1
Sermones
(2nd half of the 1400s)
El bagatella
(the trivial performer)
Imperatrix
(empress)
Imperator
(emperor)
La papessa
(the popess)
El papa
(the pope)
La temperantia
(temperance)
L'amore
(love)
Lo caro triumphale
(the triumphal chariot)
La fortezza
(fortitude)
La rotta
(the wheel)
El gobbo
(the hunchback)
Lo impichato
(the hanged man)
La morte
(death)
El diavolo
(the devil)
La sagitta
(lightning)
La stella
(the star)
La luna
(the moon)
El sole
(the sun)
Lo angelo
(the angel)
La iusticia
(justice)
El mondo
(the world)
El matto
(the fool)
|
2
Pasquinata
(1521)
il bagatella
(the trivial performer)
l'imperatrice
(the empress)
l'imperadore
(the emperor)
la bella papessa
(the beautiful popess)
il papa
(the pope)
la temperantia
(temperance)
l'amore
(love)
il carro
(the chariot)
La fortezza
(fortitude)
la ruota di fortuna
(the wheel of fortune)
il vecchio
(the old man)
il traditore
(the traitor)
la morte
(death)
il diavol
(the devil)
la casa
(the house)
la stella
(the star)
la luna
(the moon)
il sol
(the sun)
l'angelo
(the angel)
la iusticia
(justice)
il mondo
(the world)
il matto
(the fool)
|
3
Triomphi
(1534)
Matto
(fool)
Bagattella
(trivial performer)
Imperatrice
(empress)
Papessa
(popess)
Imperatore
(emperor)
Papa
(pope)
Temperanza
(temperance)
Carro Triomphale
(triumphal chariot)
Amore
(love)
Fortezza
(fortitude)
Rota
(wheel)
Tempo
(time)
Traditore
(traitor)
Morte
(death)
Diavolo
(devil)
Foco
(fire)
Stella
(star)
Luna
(moon)
Sole
(sun)
Angelo
(angel)
Giustitia
(justice)
il mondo
(the world)
|
4
Motti
(2nd quarter of the 1500s)
matto
(fool)
bagatello
(trivial performer)
l'Imperatrice
(the empress)
la Papessa
(the popess)
l'Imperatore
(the emperor)
il Papa
(the pope)
l'Amor
(love)
la Giustizia
(justice)
il Carro
(the chariot)
la Fortezza
(fortitude)
la Ruota
(the wheel)
il Cocchio
(the carriage)
il Traditore
(the traitor)
la Morte
(death)
la Temperanza
(temperance)
il Diavolo
(the devil)
il Fuoco
(fire)
la Stella
(the star)
la Luna
(the moon)
il Sole
(the sun)
l'Angelo
(the angel)
il Mondo
(the world)
|
5
Le carte parlanti
(1543)
Il matto
(the fool)
Il Bagatella
(the trivial performer)
l'Imperatrice
(the empress)
la papessa
(the popess)
lo Imperatore
(the emperor)
il papa
(the pope)
l'Amore
(love)
la Giustizia
(justice)
il carro trionfale
(the trimphal chariot)
la fortezza
(fortitude)
la ruota
(the wheel)
il vecchio
(the old man)
il traditore
(the traitor)
la morte
(death)
la temperantia
(temperance)
Plutone
(Pluto)
la casa di Plutone
(the house of Pluto)
le stelle
(the stars)
la luna
(the moon)
il sole
(the sun)
l'Angelo (le Trombe)
(the angel / the trumpets)
il mondo
(the world)
|
6
Trionphi
(mid 1500s)
il Matto
(the fool)
il Bagatino
(the trivial performer)
l'Imperatrice
(the empress)
l'Imeradore
(the emperor)
la Papessa
(the popess)
il Papa
(the pope)
la Teperanza
(temperance)
il Carro
(the chariot)
l'Amore
(love)
la Fortezza
(fortitude)
la Ruota
(the wheel)
il Gobbo
(the hunchback)
il Traditore
(the traitor)
la Morte
(death)
il Diavolo
(the devil)
la Casa del Diavolo
(the house of the devil)
la Stella
(the star)
la Luna
(the moon)
il Sole
(the sun)
l'Agnolo
(the angel)
la Justicia
(justice)
il Mondo
(the world)
|
7
Gioco di tarocchi
(1550)
il matto
(the fool)
il bagatello
(the trivial performer)
l'imperatrice
(the empress)
la papessa
(the popess)
l'imperator
(the emperor)
-
-
l'amore
(love)
la giustizia
(justice)
il carro
(the chariot)
la fortezza
(fortitude)
la rota di fortuna
(the wheel of fortune)
-
-
juda
(Judah)
la morte
(death)
la temperanza
(temperance)
il diavolo
(the devil)
la casa del danato
(the house of the damned)
la stella
(the star)
la luna
(the moon)
il sole
(the sun)
lo angelo
(the angel)
il mondo
(the world)
|
8
Invettiva
(1550)
Matto
(fool)
Bagatella
(trivial performer)
Papessa
(popess)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Carro
(chariot)
Fortezza
(fortitude)
Ruota
(wheel)
Gobbo
(hunchback)
Traditor
(traitor)
Morte
(death)
-
-
-
-
Inferno
(hell)
Stella
(star)
Luna
(moon)
Sol
(sun)
-
-
-
-
|
- Sermones de ludo cum aliis - anonymous, second half of the 1400s
- Pasquinata sull'elezione di Adriano VI - Pietro Aretino, 1521
- Triomphi de Pomeran da Cittadela composti sopra li terrocchi in laude delle famose gentil donne di Vinegia - Troilo Pomeran, 1534
- Motti alle signore di Pavia sotto il titolo dei tarocchi - anonymous, second quarter of the 1500s
- Le carte parlanti. Dialogo di Partenio Etiro nel quale si tratta del gioco con moralità piacevole. - Pietro Aretino, 1521
- Trionphi de tarocchi apropriati - anonymous, mid 1500s
- Gioco di tarocchi fatto in conclavi - Paolo Giovio, 1550
- Invettiva di Flavio Alberto Lollio ferrarese contra il giuoco del tarocco - Flavio Alberto Lollio, 1550
