LS Ancient Italian Tarot: What is its "lineage"?

Some time ago I posted a thread asking whether the LS Classic Tarot is a Marseilles or not. Somebody responded that it is "the Soprafino." I don't know exactly what that means, but HearthCricket posted this website on the different "lineages" of historical decks. I found it intriguing, and I wondered which tradition the Ancient Italian Tarot belongs to?

http://www.tarothermit.com/decks.htm

Hi Kittaine,

The Ancient Italian Tarot and the Classic Tarot from Lo Scarabeo, there are other Soprafino decks too are really in a class of their own. They're not Marseille decks, I always think of them as the Italian version of the Marseille style. Soprafino means 'superfine' and thats how they are drawn, not woodcuts but usually ink.

Thats about the extent of my knowledge of the Soprafino decks lol - hope it helps.

The Ancient Italian is based on the Avondo Brothers, Serraville

and is very close to the Soprafino Tarocco of Milan from Di Gumppenberg.

Di Gumppenberg's card production produced quite a few different versions of Milanese styles that were popular. Stuart Kaplan seems to date the Avondo version or the one we know of from Sessia Serraville as the "Ancient Italian from Lo Scarabeo" after the Tarocco Soprafino.

Mark Filipas' noting of special details in the Soprafino seems very closely replicated in the Ancient Italian--at least to my observations.

Mark Filipas correctly noted a few years ago that while Di Gumppenberg same maker of different decks, they made different styles available to their buyer. If you used the Tarothermit designation, the general category looks like Milanese Tarocchino. I would say Milanese-specific with Soprafino refinements...

Best regards,

Cerulean

Thanks, Emily and Cerulean, for the info! I'm only beginning to show an interest in old, historical decks! Need to research more.