Card: The ship

This card is an assembly of two sheets of parchment glued onto a cardboard core. The only decorated side features an illuminated ship motif, which is rather unusual and does not align with the design of tarot decks, except in Tuscany. The ship is floating on the water, its golden sails adorned with a cross made of red squares. The horizon is covered with a golden pattern stamped with diamonds and quatrefoils. The entire piece is bordered by a red net with white accents, while a two-line quote from the Latin poet Horace can be read at the bottom: "Odi profanum/volgus et arceo", or in French "I hate the vulgar crowd and keep them at a distance" (Horace, Odes III, 1, 1).

This card is an early example of the popularity of literary or humanistic games invented in Italian courtyard environments in the late Middle Ages.