Queen of Tarot

The ancient wisdom of the cards

Evolution of the Suits

This page shows the evolution of playing card and tarot card suits over time and geography. The suits began with denominations of Chinese currency, and progressed through multiple misinterpretations, as a result of cultural differences and vague, illegible printing techniques.

  Coins Wands Swords Cups
Ancient Analog Square Holed Coin (1)
Square Holed Coin (1)

Strings of Coins (100)
Strings of Coins (100)

  Myriads of Coins (10,000)
Myriads of Coins (10,000)
Chinese Suits coins
coins
strings
strings
Some later decks include a fourth suit, either 1000 cash or 100,000 cash. myriads
myriads
Persian Suits discs, suns, or coins
discs, suns, or coins
wands, sticks, torches, polo sticks
wands, sticks, torches, polo sticks
swords
swords
Other suits include slaves, harps, fans, shells, and crowns
Indian Suits silver coins
silver coins
slaves
slaves
swords
swords
crowns
harps
  gold coins
gold coins
writs
writs
goods
goods
crowns
crowns
Mamluk Suits Ace of Coins
coins
3 of Polo Sticks
polo sticks
9 of Swords
swords
Two of Myriads
myriads
Moorish Suits Ace of Coins
coins
Ace of Polo Sticks
polo sticks
Ace of Swords
swords
Ace of Myriads
myriads
Latin Suits Ace of Coins
coins
Ace of Wands
wands
Ace of Swords
swords
Ace of Cups
cups
German Suits King of Bells
bells
Unter of Acorns
acorns
King of Leaves
leaves
Ober of Hearts
hearts
French Suits Queen of Diamonds
diamonds
Queen of Clubs
clubs
Knave of Spades
spades
King of Hearts
hearts

Tags

playing card suits, evolution of tarot cards, history, china, persia, india, france, germany, italy, spain, turkey

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