John Shephard, The Tarot Trumps, Cosmos in Minature; the Structure & Symbolism of the Twenty-two Tarot Trumps,

John Shephard,

The Tarot Trumps, Cosmos in Minature; the Structure & Symbolism of the Twenty-two Tarot Trumps,

Aquarian

1985

134pp many illustrated some in colour. Describes the structure and symbolism of the 22 mysterious trump cards, including photographs and illustrations of cards.coda1-x4.

The most useful book on tarot interpretation I've ever found is another little out-of-print book by John Shepherd called The Tarot Trumps: Cosmos in Miniature (Wellingborough, Northamptonshire: The Aquarian Press, 1985).

This lovely essay on the tarot discusses the imagery of the tarot trumps in historical and cultural context, considering the influence of late medieval Christianity, astrology, Greek and Roman mythology (which was experiencing a revival in the early Renaissance period that produced the tarot), as well as literary and popular culture in northern Italy, this is by far the most interesting and useful exploration of the meaning of the symbolism in the cards...