Tarot! Renaissance Symbols, Modern Visions

Now Available!

A major new volume explores the origins of tarot in Renaissance Italy and its enduring relevance as a source of inspiration for modern and contemporary artists.

This beautiful book presents valuable new information and context about how tarot has developed, evolved, and been reimagined by artists, mystics, and writers over the centuries, from its origins as a fifteenth-century Italian court game to its profound transformation into a tool for divination, artistic creation, and storytelling. This new volume fills a glaring gap in the currently available published material on the history and artistic development of tarot, its symbolism, and its unique function as a source of inspiration for contemporary artists.

An illustrated introduction plus six other richly illustrated essays explore the extensive history of tarot, its origins and iconography as well as its occult and highly personal uses in spirituality and divination. The plates section features twenty-two spreads of tarot cards, comparing the same motifs across six centuries of artistic reinvention.

Published by the Morgan Library & Museum in association with D Giles Limited.

This catalogue accompanies the exhibition Tarot! Renaissance Symbols, Modern Visions on view at the Morgan Library & Museum June 26 through October 4, 2026.