Etteilla: the Book of Thoth

Five booklets entitled How to relax with the card game called Tarot were published in Amsterdam and Paris between 1783 and 1787.

The author Etteilla maintained that the Tarot game was the legendary Book of Thoth a magical text dating back to ancient Egypt relating to Thoth the Egyptian god of wisdom and magic. According to the cartomant this book was created in 2170 BC and he therefore wanted to restore them to their original appearance. Around 1789 he had a deck designed which he entitled Book of Thoth or the great game of 78 Egyptian Tarot cards. Only a handful of cards from that work remained but in 1804 a complete version was printed again and which is reproduced here.