In the collection there are several different types of card decks. The cards vary in both in size, design and decoration. It is possible to follow the development of the same design published several times. There are examples of card decks that are only released in a very small number and signed, and there are decks that have been intended for a wider audience. We present examples of different tarot cards, all of which are in the collection.
Ther have also been produced several Tarot cards over the years. K. Frank Jensen Collection contains several older interesting examples.
Examples includes decks with images of buildings from Copenhagen. Animals have also been a favorite motif, as evidenced by:
Tarok with animal pictures
The set is from between 1820-37 and Jensen's reproduction of Denmark's oldest preserved tarot set by Jean Friedrich Mayer from the 18th century. The original deck is according to Jensen's own information at the National Museum, and he has written the book Jean Friedrich Mayers danske dyretarot Danmarks ældste bevarede kortspil about this particular card set. See a review of the reproduction here:
Knapp Tarot from 1929 is one of the collection's rare card set. The Tarot Set is an original edition designed by J. Augustus Hall. The set is accompanied by the essay An Essay on the Book of Thot authored by Manly P. Hall. That essay and card set are still assembled makes the set special, as not all existing sets are anymore accompanied by such a booklet. The essay is among other things an introduction to the history and significance of Tarot in the 20th century.
J. Augustus Knapp and Manly P. Hall later joined together to form a whole school within tarot cards.
Roskilde University Library has a reproduction of Cary Yale Visconti Tarot from the 15th century. The cards are believed to be painted by Bonifacio Bembo, and the original edition is currently part of the Cary Collection and Playing Cards, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University. The cards testify to the long history of the genre, and they provide an interesting insight into the historical map sets.
See a review of the entire card set here:
There are different schools within the tarot. These are Builders of the Adytum, Cary Yale Visconti Tarot and also Knapp-Hall examples of. The different schools have different rules for the use of maps and different designs and traditions. For example, Builders of the Adytum (B.O.T.A.) was black and white until the 14th edition where it was released in color. The leading tarot schools have been the inspiration for others, and in this way it is possible to see the development of various tarot cards in relation to each other.