Name That Deck!

Name That Deck!
By James W. Revak

DECK 7 OF 15
(Click the images for larger ones.)

Answer: The Visconti-Sforza Tarot, painted in the mid-15th century. Many historians have attributed the cards to Bonifacio Bembo; however, some have attributed them to Francesco Zavattari.

These cards are among the oldest surviving Tarot cards. Some scholars argue that the Papess (below, left) depicts Sister Manfreda, who had been elected Pope by the Guglielmites, an heretical Christian sect, and burned at the stake in 1300. The deck was almost certainly made for Francesco Sforza. Both he and Manfreda were related to the Visconti family.

Illustrations (left to right): The Papess and Three of Clubs from Pierpont Morgan-Bergamo Visconti-Sforza Tarot (mid-15th century) (from The Visconti-Sforza Tarot Cards by Michael Dummett, copyright © 1986 George Braziller).

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DECK 7 OF 15 (Click the images for larger ones.)
Answer: The Visconti-Sforza Tarot, painted in the mid-15th century. Many historians have attributed the cards to Bonifacio Bembo; however, some have attributed them to Francesco Zavattari. These cards are among the oldest surviving Tarot cards. Some scholars argue that the Papess (below, left) depicts Sister Manfreda, who had been elected Pope by the Guglielmites, an heretical Christian sect, and burned at the stake in 1300. The deck was almost certainly made for Francesco Sforza. Both he and Manfreda were related to the Visconti family.

Illustrations (left to right): The Papess and Three of Clubs from Pierpont Morgan-Bergamo Visconti-Sforza Tarot (mid-15th century) (from The Visconti-Sforza Tarot Cards by Michael Dummett, copyright © 1986 George Braziller).
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