Rosanne
Oh for a change of pace.........here in this forum.
A friend PM'd me asking for some information about cards.
I thought her inquiry constituted a genuine historical inquiry.
Someone had asked if the Visconti cards were made of fabric.
Well, in one sense they were......(I think?)
Then from the History of Baghdad I find this...
Originally it was not called Paper (from Papyrus) it was called several names as 'originating from Baghdad'..words like Bagdicus'
Today we have derogatory connotations of the word 'bagga' which was the term for the bundles of rags carried by those Eastern merchants and rag and bone men.
A woman who is worthless is called in English a Baggage. The etymology is very direct.
I wonder if the word bagatelle (the Card 1) has the same connotations?
Kwaw has said he thinks that the term means a trifle, but I wonder if it has a lesser meaning as worthless man?
Right next to him is the Papesse who seems in Tarot terms to be Holy.
I wonder if she is the worthless partner to him in the sense of watered down milk (Pap)
=false belief? Worthless information? Cant? Heresy? Distorted Canon Law?
It is interesting that the West in early times, was derogatory about Eastern invention. It has lasted a long time.
but back to paper...
Pasteboard is layers of 'paper' glued together to form card.
So the Visconti is, in actual fact, fabric.
~Rosanne
A friend PM'd me asking for some information about cards.
I thought her inquiry constituted a genuine historical inquiry.
Someone had asked if the Visconti cards were made of fabric.
Well, in one sense they were......(I think?)
From the History of Paper in EncyclopediaIn ancient times writing was generally on bamboo or on pieces of silk, which were then called ji. But silk being expensive and bamboo heavy, these two materials were not convenient. Then Tsai Lun thought of using tree bark, hemp, rags, and fish nets. In 105 he made a report to the emperor on the process of paper making, and received high praise for his ability. From this time paper has been in use everywhere and is called the "paper of Marquis Tsai."
Then from the History of Baghdad I find this...
For a long time the Chinese closely guarded the secret of paper manufacture and tried to eliminate other Oriental centers of production to ensure a monopoly. However in 751 A.D. the T'ang army was defeated by the Ottoman Turks at a mighty battle at the Talas River. Some Chinese soldiers and paper makers were captured and brought to Samarkand. The Arabs learned the paper making from the Chinese prisoners and built the first paper industry in Baghdad in 793 A.D. They, too, kept it a secret, and Europeans did not learn how to make paper until several centuries later. The Egyptians learned the paper making from the Arabs during the early 10th century. Around 1100 A.D. paper arrived in Northern Africa and by 1150 A.D. it arrived to Spain as a result of the crusades and established the first paper industry in Europe.
Originally it was not called Paper (from Papyrus) it was called several names as 'originating from Baghdad'..words like Bagdicus'
Today we have derogatory connotations of the word 'bagga' which was the term for the bundles of rags carried by those Eastern merchants and rag and bone men.
A woman who is worthless is called in English a Baggage. The etymology is very direct.
I wonder if the word bagatelle (the Card 1) has the same connotations?
Kwaw has said he thinks that the term means a trifle, but I wonder if it has a lesser meaning as worthless man?
Right next to him is the Papesse who seems in Tarot terms to be Holy.
I wonder if she is the worthless partner to him in the sense of watered down milk (Pap)
=false belief? Worthless information? Cant? Heresy? Distorted Canon Law?
It is interesting that the West in early times, was derogatory about Eastern invention. It has lasted a long time.
but back to paper...
Pasteboard is layers of 'paper' glued together to form card.
So the Visconti is, in actual fact, fabric.
~Rosanne