| The Tarot has entertained card lovers
for centuries. Yet while its symbolic content has been traced to a variety of influences—such as social hierarchy,
the Virtues, Biblical and classical allusions, astrology and perhaps even alchemy—these do not explain why the
Tarot’s designers settled upon these specific images, or why they arranged these images in a particular sequence.
Could the trumps also have been influenced by the Hebrew alphabet, as esotericists have long claimed? An Alphabetic Masquerade: The Letter Symbolism of the Tarot presents new research showing a previously unseen connection between the Hebrew alphabet and the Marseilles trumps. This connection lies within the Hebrew lexicon, wherein words representing the 22 allegorical subjects can be found in precise alphabetical order. Each trump, in effect, illustrates one Hebrew letter, in much the same way as a child’s English primer echoes “A is for apple” and “B is for boy”. Not only do the allegorical subjects exist in alphabetical sequence but virtually every item on each trump can be found with the same initial letter, suggesting the Tarot of Marseilles to be a “visual abecedarium” of the Hebrew alphabet. Numerous iconic enigmas in the Marseilles trumps seem to be clarified by reference to the Hebrew lexicon, such as the identity of the beak or ‘rostrum’ on the back of the Emperor’s throne, the objects alluded to by the two towers of The Moon, the reason why The Chariot horses were depicted with no backsides, and the identity of the necklaces worn by Empress, Emperor, Justice, and Fool. Also discussed are the numerous alphabetic clues found within the 1835 Tarocchino Milanese pattern, designed by the Italian artist Carlo Dellarocca. This pattern is distinguished by the many unique objects which Dellarocca added into his trump designs. These objects provide a key to the Tarocchino Milanese since their many and singular positions within the Hebrew lexicon argues strongly that they are alphabetic allusions. Also included are a brief overview of Renaissance alphabetic pursuits and an introduction to the variant Hebrew letter correspondences associated with the Tarot. The book is illustrated with the 1760 designs of Nicholas Conver. |
