Old Essays 5, 1999: The Triumphs of Marziano

 Before Franco's 1989 English-language article on Marziano's treatise in The Playing-Card, https://naibi.net/A/25-FIRSTARO-Z.pdf, it was only sketchily known, first from brief notes by Paul Durrieu. His main note in 1911, which can still be read online, was brought to the attention of those interested in the early tarot by Gertrude Moakley in her 1966 book (online with my comments at http://moakleyupdated.blogspot.com/). Durrieu had left the impression that it was only sixteen cards; Franco gave a much fuller account, of course including the four "orders" of birds as well as much else. Ten years later he followed up his original article with the present one, in Italian as "I trionfi di Marziano," https://naibi.net/A/70-MARZI-Z.pdf and now translated below. He also has a 2013 note in English, "Reflecting on Marziano's Pack," which can be read by downloading it to a computer from its link at https://naibi.net/p/index.html, or else reading it online at http://trionfi.com/evx-reflection-on-marziano-pack-of-cards.

Marziano's treatise has of course been extensively discussed (search on Tarot History Forum), as well as being translated twice, first by Ross Caldwell in The Playing-Card, now with Marco Ponzi and published with the Latin on facing pages as a book. The first 34 pages can be read in Google Books, https://www.google.com/books/edition/Tr ... frontcover

The numbers by themselves in the left margin are the pages of Franco's online pdf. The footnotes, which in the original appeared at the end, are here put at the bottom of each page. Comments in brackets are mine in consultation with Franco, for clarification purposes.


THE TRIUMPHS OF MARZIANO
Franco Pratesi – 03.12.1999
(Italian original in The Playing-Card 28, no. 3 (1999), pp. 144-151)

ABSTRACT

Some further information is provided on the earliest tarot pack described, resulting from the collaboration of Filippo Maria Visconti, Marziano da Tortona and Michelino di Besozzo. [note 1] The corresponding evidence, coming from a manuscript kept in the French National Library, is described with additional detail. Possible relationships between this peculiar pack and early tarots are discussed. In particular, here the specific iconography is fully reported and commented. The situation in the mid of the 15th century is finally outlined.

PREMISE

The subject of this study is the first Visconti Tarot [that featuring Greco-Roman gods and demigods], which is, at least as far as we know today, the first we have a description of at all. After a brief summary of the relevant documentation, some additions are added here to the discussion presented in a previous study, [note 1] to which we refer for basic information. For general documentation on the subject, the obligatory reference is Michael Dummett, from whom we also have a complete work in Italian. [note 2]

INFORMATION FROM THE MANUSCRIPT

All the documentation on the subject under examination comes from the manuscript Lat. 8745 of the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris (folios 1-32). Initially there is the transcription of the letter of Iacopo Antonio Marcello; there follows the treatise of Marziano da Tortona on the deification of sixteen heroes, preceded by an interesting preface.

Marcello's letter to Queen Isabella of Lorraine served as an accompaniment to the tarot deck and a book on the same subject, already owned by Filippo Maria Visconti. Marcello writes from Monselice in mid-November 1449 but reports on the events of the previous year, when he was at the head of the Venetian troops sent to support Francesco Sforza in the war against the Milanese.

Marziano, before the treatise, writes a five-page preface. The dedication is addressed to Filippo Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan. This reduces the uncertainty about the date to a few years: Filippo Maria's settlement in Milan, after the death of his brother, occurred in 1412, while Marziano's death occurred about ten years later. The treatise can therefore be dated with good approximation to around 1415. It is thus the first known testimony on the trionfi.

The game was conceived as a sequence of heroes, divided into four orders of virtue (Jupiter, Apollo, Mercury, Hercules), riches (Juno, Neptune, Mars, Aeolus), virginity or continence (Pallas, Diana, Vesta, Daphne) and pleasures (Venus, Bacchus, Ceres, Cupid). Correlative to these, below them are the orders of eagle, phoenix, turtledove and dove, presided over by four kings. For eagles and turtledoves, the most prevail over the least, while for phoenices and doves, the opposite occurs. The orders do not have power over each other, but that of the gods prevails. Among the gods, the one listed first is the most powerful.

In Marziano's "Treatise on the Deification of Sixteen Heroes," the personages are illustrated one after the other, thus passing recurrently through the orders defined above. In a rather systematic manner, brief biographical notes are provided and the main inventions useful to humanity are recalled (this type of attribution also had a large following at the time). Finally, Marziano dedicates a sentence or two to describing the typical depiction of each personage.

THE ENVIRONMENT OF THE ORIGINS

For this deck of triumphs, it is not immediately clear what the contributions to the ideation (to be shared between Filippo Maria and Marziano) and the concrete realization (between Marziano and Michelino) are. It is above all the role of Marziano that can vary between extreme limits. On the one hand it could be minimal: the idea is Filippo Maria's, the artistic realization is Michelino's; Marziano would have only compiled the brief
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1. F. Pratesi, “The Earliest Tarot Pack Known.” The Playing Card XVIII (1989) 28-38.
2. M. Dummett, Il Mondo e l’Angelo. Naples: Bibliopolis, 1993.


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accompanying treatise, of a literary-mythological nature. On the other hand, Marziano's contribution could have been decisive: from a vague suggestion by Filippo Maria, he would have conceived both the structuring of the whole and the individual figures, then painted (or repainted better) by Michelino.

Since the current use of tarot is predominantly divinatory, we would be tempted to look for a trace of this use right at the origin. We are encouraged to imagine something of the sort by the observation that Marziano was a well-known scholar of astrology, a discipline that also greatly interested Filippo Maria, to the point that he was guided in his state activities by famous astrologers of various origins, welcomed at his court. However, we also know that the Duke himself was an avid player of games, and therefore nothing prevents the triumphs in question from being introduced in a purely gaming environment, as we will encounter them exclusively later, for over three centuries.

NUMBER OF TRIUMPHS AND [ORDINARY] CARDS

It should not be too surprising that there are only sixteen triumphal cards: that they may originally have been fewer than the twenty-two that have become traditional has been suggested by some experts, also to explain the presence of some cards that are different in the Visconti-Sforza tarot. These latter would have been added not to replace lost cards, as is usually supposed, but to adapt a previous deck to the new tradition. An independent confirmation comes from the Estense Archives, where ancient triumphal decks of 70 cards are mentioned. [note 3] Let us then examine the possible composition of this unusual deck, while recognizing that this discussion is inevitably speculative.

Above the numeral cards (not explicitly mentioned but necessarily present to make the indicated descending and ascending hierarchy possible) are the court cards (of which here only the kings are explicitly recalled). For the highest cards, there is a change of role and here also of suit; however, in all respects it is as if each of the 4 suits were extended by another 4 upper cards, in a manner not dissimilar in essence to how in the traditional tarot deck the four figure cards within each suit exceed the ten numeral cards.

The mechanism by which these triumphs were inserted into the [ordinary] playing cards corresponds to an addition of higher court cards in equal numbers for each suit, but probably in such a way as to be able to form a fifth autonomous suit. For such a system to work properly [i.e., with an equal number in each suit], the total number of cards must be a multiple of both 4 and 5, that is, 20. Limiting oneself to plausible numbers, one can start with suits of nine numeral cards and three courts, which would remind us of decks common in Spain today; with the addition of three more higher figures per suit one could obtain a fifth suit of twelve trumps and a complete deck of 60 cards.

But the next alternative appears more plausible, with ten numeral cards and six court cards, for example both male and female personages, as already mentioned by Johannes of Rheinfelden and as would be partly preserved in the well-known Visconti di Modrone deck; four upper cards added per suit, as in the Marziano deck, could alternatively constitute the fifth suit of the triumphs, for a total of 80 cards, as already indicated by Michael Dummett. [note 4] From here, the standard tarot deck could later be obtained by eliminating a couple of court cards and “promoting” six of the highest cards of the four suits to the new suit of triumphs.

THE GODS: THEIR CHOICE, MYTHOLOGICAL TRADITION

The subject was of considerable topicality at the time; in the wake of late Latin treatise writers, various authors had attempted to redescribe the main mythological figures. In particular, euhemerism - with the traditional transformation of pagan gods into “deified” heroes after death for their deeds - was first a weapon against their worship, used by the Church already in the first centuries, and later served to keep alive the no longer dangerous myths connected to the ancient deities. [note 5]

The sixteen personages selected for deification represent a fairly reasonable choice among the many possibilities offered by Greco-Roman mythology. It can be noted that they are approximately half male and half female, so much so that the presence of nine gods and seven goddesses seems almost an oversight.

The absence of gods such as Saturn, Pluto and Vulcan is somewhat surprising. On the contrary, some of the presences, such as Aeolus or Cupid, seem to correspond to an overestimation of
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3. G. Campori, ““Le carte da gioco dipinte per gli Estensi.” Atti e Memorie delle RR. Dep. St. Patr. per le prov. Mod. e Parm. 7 (1874), pp. 123-132. [Online with translation see http://trionfi.com/0/e/16/.]
4.M. Dummett, “A Comment on Marziano.” The Playing Card XVIII (1989) 73-75.
5. J. Seznec, La sopravvivenza degli antichi Dei. Turin: Boringhieri, 1981. [Translated into English as The Survival of the Ancient Gods, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1953, reprinted 1972.]

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their role in classical mythology; but it is above all the presence of Daphne that appears alien to the divinities of Olympus, although her metamorphosis had already inspired many artists.

CORRESPONDENCE WITH COMMON TRIUMPHS

It is not easy to understand whether we have here a prototype invented as a variant of the common playing cards, and therefore preliminary to the subsequent affirmation of the tarot, or a variant imagined starting from a deck of tarot cards already existing. Only in the first case would we have direct evidence of the birth of the new game. However, such a distinction is not ultimately decisive. Even if it was a variant of already existing triumphs, these must still have been in a primitive stage corresponding at most only in part to the traditional tarot.

Examining the common Marseille Tarot, one notices that the triumphs are partly full characters, partly scenes in which the personages are more than one and in the background. It can, however, be assumed that at the origin there were minor formal differences between the court cards of the highest cards of the four suits and those of the additional suit of triumphs: predominantly typical mythological or courtly personages.

As a correspondence of figures, some characters can be considered strictly analogous, such as Emperor-Jupiter, Empress-Juno, Love-Cupid, Popess-Vesta, Chariot-Mars; others are obtainable with simple transformations: Strength-Hercules, Justice-Demeter, Fool-Mercury. Continuing along this path, however, considerable difficulties are encountered in matching all the figures of Marziano to sixteen appropriately chosen among the canonical trumps. Surprising again is the absence of Saturn among the sixteen characters, the only one missing of the seven planets, who instead could easily find a counterpart in the traditional triumphs.

On the other hand, triumphs with a markedly negative meaning remain outside of this comparison, as seems logical given that we are dealing here with a deification of heroes: therefore, possible roles are missing for cards such as Hanged Man, Death, Devil, Tower, or ones corresponding to them.

ICONOGRAPHY OF THE TRIUMPHS

The iconography of these images in their entirety appears worthy of attention from experts. Given its relative originality, I thought it useful to summarize its main features in table form.

I. Jupiter. Seated on a throne, he is provided with four celestial insignia, on the right above, the splendor of just reason; on the left, above, the light with which he founded the laws; on the lower right, the bright star similar to Mars that shines in the saviors of the state; on the lower left, the lightning.

II. Juno. Her appearance indicates that she is the wife of Jupiter; her head is veiled in the manner of matrons, and the order of her crown indicates the number of her kingdoms. She is richly adorned, but her beautiful colored garments are evanescent. The chariot and weapons assigned to her by Virgil, seem to be omitted here.

III. Pallas. In her right hand she holds a peaceful olive tree; she wears a multiple amice and a variegated dress (to indicate the changes over time in the opinions of the wise). She holds a light shield made hideous by the Gorgon.

IV. Venus. With a rather lascivious appearance, with loose hair, bare chest and arms, bare knees, to induce love more easily; with a loose amice of lynx skin; with her bow ready and her quiver on her back to hunt and wound the minds of men who wander in the darkness.

V. Apollo. He has an appearance suited to military life; his long-haired head is adorned with laurel according to warrior and poetic rights; he carries a bow and arrows in the use of which he excels.

VI. Neptune. With an old-fashioned regal appearance, he sits on a golden chariot drawn by two dolphins. He has a trident for a scepter to indicate the three characteristics of water.


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VII. Diana. Dressed in a white amice, she wanders with bow and arrows on a golden chariot, drawn by white deer with bright golden antlers. She is depicted with a triune aspect.

VIII. Bacchus. With a face always youthful and his temples adorned with his vines. According to his name, he carries a staff for the support of drunkards. Two tigers draw the chariot.

IX. Mercury. Like the Arcadians, he has his head covered with a galero [wide-brimmed hat]; with his caduceus he separates fighting serpents; he puts on winged shoes.

X. Mars. With his chariot decorated with a thousand ensigns taken from enemies ... He rides with his unsheathed sword covered with blood to show the way.

XI. Vesta. With chaste appearance in the manner of nuns, she stands at the altar before the immortals and prays to the gods.

XII. Ceres. She proceeds in royal dress and the harvest of agriculture alongside; she holds a burning torch in her hand.

XIII. Hercules. With his terrible aspect, his brow crowned with laurel, neglecting any graceful garments, with the spoils of the enormous Nemean lion, a distinguished monument of strength. At his feet lies the anthropomorphic monster of the Strophades, struck by arrows.

XIV. Aeolus. Seated in royal attire among the rocks of his islands, making flames with his sceptre.

XV. Daphne. In virginal dress embracing her Laurel.

XVI. Cupid. In flight to mark the instability of lovers, he is surrounded by human hearts. He wanders naked through heaven and earth with his bow ready to shoot.

In detail, the most ancient traditions of the Aratea [a Greco-Roman astronomical text] are no longer followed, nor those of Arab origin, directly or through Babylonian influences. It would then seem natural to expect a marked fidelity to the Alberic canon which at the time was also establishing itself thanks to the success of the “De genealogiis deorum gentilium.” [note 6]

Instead, the reconstruction of Marziano's images from literary works is mostly autonomous. Noteworthy are Jupiter with four celestial signs on the margins, Venus the huntress dressed in lynx skin, Mars on horseback with a bloody sword (even though his famous chariot is mentioned above), Vesta in a monastic habit now completely "Christianized," Ceres holding a torch to purify the fields.

The depiction of Daphne in virginal dress embracing her laurel is perhaps to be attributed to an oversight by Marziano; usually it is Apollo who embraces Daphne already partly transformed into a laurel.

Even the chariots on which some of the gods are depicted are quite particular: often made of gold, they are pulled by pairs of dolphins, deer, and tigers for Neptune, Diana and Bacchus respectively; we are already on the path that will lead to Zucchi's deities, triumphant on their chariots. [note 7].

THE SITUATION IN LORRAINE AND LOMBARDY IN THE MID-FOURTEENTH CENTURY

The part of Iacopo Antonio Marcello's testimony relating to his own time and initiative presents the following problem: how could these cards have been used at the court of Lorraine if we know that the Tarot arrived in France only later, probably in the following century? It is a question that admits more than one answer, including that the absence of testimonies does not equate to the absence of the game.
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6. H. Liebeschütz, Fulgentius Metaforalis. Leipzig: Teubner, 1926.
7. F. Saxl, ed., Antike Götter in der Spätrenaissance (Leipzig: Teubner, 1927), [edition of] Jacopo Zucchi [ca. 1541-ca. 1590], Discorso sopra li Dei de’ Gentili e loro imprese, who also has the chariots of Jupiter drawn by eagles, of Venus by swans, and so on.


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The most plausible reason for the connection is given by the figure of Queen Isabella. Lorraine was not a kingdom, but the Duchess of Lorraine happened to be Queen ... of Sicily. Isabella herself had heroically crossed Italy to assert against the House of Aragon the hereditary rights of her husband René of Anjou, held prisoner in Dijon. Thus, in principle, the queen could have learned about the game of triumphs in Italy; on the other hand, King René was notoriously inserted in a prestigious artistic and literary environment. Later, the queen could have distracted herself with triumphs during long stays in the manor of Launay, near Saumur, where she spent most of those years, until her death (1453).

As regards the history of Tarot in Lombardy, the situation in 1448-49, at the time of Marcello's letter and the events he reports, appears very different from that of Marziano's deck. We are still in early times as regards the body of evidence preserved on Tarot. But the situation has evidently changed: decks of triumphs are in use in the camp of Francesco Sforza and are used to pass the time while waiting for military operations. [note 8] Furthermore, there were already craftsmen specialized in the production of Tarot decks - it is precisely to one of these that Marcello tries to turn for a superior quality examplar. Clearly, towards the middle of the fifteenth century Tarot cards are no longer, even if originally, rare and precious objects. By now among the decks in circulation in Lombardy it is becoming difficult to find an example out of the ordinary, suitable for Queen Isabella.

CONCLUSIONS

The information that can be gleaned from this testimony about the origin of the Tarot is of considerable importance. Unlike other cases, here we are really close to the origin of the Tarot, so close that today any indication of an earlier era can only be considered at the level of hypothesis.

The iconography of the first Visconti tarot [deck] is particular, and together with the selection of “deified” personages in this extraordinary deck, it deserves an in-depth analysis by experts.

In the ongoing discussions among playing card historians, this testimony supports an expansion of the common deck to give rise to the Tarot: the trumps could have been born as an upward extension of a hierarchy already present within the four traditional suits and which would have ended up producing an independent hierarchy, valid only within the added higher figures. It probably took some time for the “triumphal” figures to clearly separate, in terms of images and functions, from the higher figures of the four suits.
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8. Archivio Ducale Sforzesco, Registri delle missive. Milan: Archivio di Stato, 1982, vol. II, no. 4, letter 11.12.1450.