The Tarot is surrounded by all kinds of myths and legends. One of the most persistent myths about the Tarot is that it was created and spread by gypsies. In fact, the origin of the Tarot is Italian, probably via the East, where it emerged as a gambling game during the late fourteenth century. It is still played today in France and Italy. It is a bit like bridge, with the Major Arcana cards used as trumps.

This led to another myth - that it was immediately condemned by the church for being sinful. It certainly was - but because the church was opposed to gambling. It was another 300 years before its potential for use as a divination tool was realised.

By the time it started being used as a divination tool, its origins had been long forgotten. At that time, people were fascinated by the relics emerging from Egypt, and wrongly thought that gypsies were the descendents of the Egyptians, so they were creditted with creating and spreading it. It was a lovely, mysterious story, but anyone who cared to look would see that gypsy fortune tellers used ordinary playing cards - Tarot cards were much too expensive and rare for this purpose. These days, a myth maker would probably claim they were created and spread by aliens!

The Tarot is so fascinating that all kinds of beliefs have clustered around it. But it is fascinating enough without the tall tales!