The Fool's Journey : the History, Art, & Symbolism of the Tarot - Robert M Place

This is one of the best resources for understanding the Tarot's mystical symbolism. It includes an updated history based on Place's The Tarot: History Symbolism and Divination, which "Booklist" said "may be the best book ever written on ...the tarot." This edition adds color illustrations of key works and comparative illustrations from the Renaissance, from alchemical texts, from ancient Egypt, and from Occult sources. It views the Tarot as a 500-year visual conversation between artists, mystics, and occultists. The work is based on the 2010 Tarot exhibition at the LA Craft and Folk Art Museum, curated by Place, and includes the Visconti-Sforza Tarot, the 1st Italian printed deck, the oldest Tarot of Marseille, The 1st Occult reference, the 1st Occult Tarot, the 1st modern Tarot, the 1st New Age Tarot, and examples from popular modern Decks including the Twilight Tarot, the Legacy Tarot, the Deviant Moon Tarot, the Annotated Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery, and Place's Alchemical Tarot.