A1: Diodorus Siculus's Tharopes

Introductory note: This isn't really a blog. It's a long essay, or monograph, with pictures presented using blog format. You read it like a book, starting at the top and scrolling down to the bottom. Then you can go to the next section by clicking "older posts." The Table of Contents is on the right. To access a particular chapter, you can just click on its title there.

Many of my references are in terms of links to websites on the Internet. Over time some of these links may be broken. In such cases I have tried to give sufficient information that the reader can find other websites with the same information, or locate it in print media.

In his provocative essay Tharochus Bacchus est (http://www.letarot.it/page.aspx?id=287&lng=ENG) Andrea Vitali advances a new hypothesis for the origin of the word "tarocchi": that it comes from a classical source available in 15th century Italy about Bacchus; specifically, it refers to a person whom Diodorus Siculus called "Tharopes" or possibly even "Tharocus." In Diodorus, he was the one to whom Bacchus first gave his rites. In this supplement to his essay I do not intend to repeat what Andrea says; I want to defend his hypothesis with additional data, in Part A sticking  closely to what was extant in 15th-16th century Italy and mostly--except for a few suit cards in one deck--to one card, the Matto, as it was called. (It is the Fool card in English; but the Italian word "Matto" meant "Madman.") I am not concerned only with the derivation of the word, but also with how natural it would be to associate tarot with Bacchus, i.e. Dionysus, at the time and place the word "tarochi" first appeared as a designation for a deck and game of cards.

Moreover, I think there are other reasons for supposing the cards were associated with Dionysus, In Part B I will be ranging further, from the late 15th century in Italy to the early or mid 18th century in France (a practice I will start in the second part of my discussion of the Fool card), and through the rest of the 22 tarot trumps, to show again the naturalness of an association between Dionysus and the cards, one not written of by those promoting it for fear of consequences emanating from hostile quarters in church and state, and not written about by its detractors either from ignorance--because it is far from obvious--or for fear of giving the association undeserved  publicity. I explain the reasons for such fear at the end of part A.

In what follows, I use the names "Bacchus" and "Dionysus" interchangeably. Both are Greek terms, "Dionysus" the main name, but also "Bacchus" from "the frenzy he induces," according to Wikipedia's entry for "Dionysus,", which also says that "Bacchus" was the Romans' name for the god.

I will start where Andrea started, with Diodorus, a first century b.c.e. Greek historian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diodorus_Siculus). Here is the relevant passage, from Vol. 3, p. 65 of his Library of History (http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Diodorus_Siculus/3E*.html).. I put the name in bold: 

Among those who were punished by him, the most renowned, they say, were Pentheus among the Greeks, Myrrhanus the king of the Indians, and Lycurgus among the Thracians. For the myth relates that when Dionysus was on the point of leading his force over from Asia into Europe, he concluded a treaty of friendship with Lycurgus, who was king of that part of Thrace which lies upon the Hellespont. Now when he had led the first of the Bacchantes over into a friendly land, as he thought, Lycurgus issued orders to his soldiers to fall upon them by night and to slay both Dionysus and all the Maenads, and Dionysus, learning of the plot from a man of the country who was called Charops, was struck with dismay, because his army was on the other side of the Hellespont and only a mere handful of his friends had crossed over with him. Consequently he sailed across secretly to his army, and then Lycurgus, they say, falling upon the Maenads in the city known as Nysium, slew them all, but Dionysus, bringing his forces over, conquered the Thracians in a battle, and taking Lycurgus alive put out his eyes and inflicted upon him every kind of outrage, and then crucified him. Thereupon, out of gratitude to Charops for the aid the man had rendered him, Dionysus made over to him the kingdom of the Thracians and instructed him in the secret rites connected with the initiations; and Oeagrus, p301 the son of Charops, then took over both the kingdom and the initiatory rites which were handed down in the mysteries, the rites which afterwards Orpheus, the son of Oeagrus, who was the superior of all men in natural gifts and education, learned from his father; Orpheus also made many changes in the practices and for that reason the rites which had been established by Dionysus were also called "Orphic."

In modern editions of the Greek, "Charops" is spelled "Charopos": chi alpha rho omicron pi omicron sigma; also "Charopi" in a different case. But toward the end of the 1400s, what was most widely available was Poggio's 1449 translation into Latin; there the spelling was "Tharopes." This translation circulated widely in manuscript before being printed, first in Bologna 1472, then Venice and Paris 1476. That Bologna was first is already auspicious, as that city was already probably a major producer of the deck with the special cards, and the Diodorus must have been one of the first books printed in that city.

I have not been anywhere I could see one of these early Italian Poggios, but I was able to secure a scan of the relevant pages of the Paris 1531 edition, which probably is the same as the Paris 1476 and Venice 1476. Moreover, I have in front of me a 1476-1478 English translation by a certain John Skelton, based on a manuscript copy of Poggio's translation (The Bibliotheca historica of Diodorus Siculus translated by John Skelton[, edited by  F. M. Salter and H. L. R. Edwards, vol. I text, London 1956; and vol. 2, Introduction, Notes, and Glossary, London 1957). 

Both the Skelton translation and the 1531 Paris edition of Poggio's Latin, the spelling is "Tharopes".  Here, shared by the Harry Ransom Center of the University of Texas for research and personal use only, is the relevant page in the Paris 1531,

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As we can see, the word "Tharopes" is highlighted in the margin. It also appears in the index of names at the beginning of the book. That's how I found the right page, using that index.

Here are the first two instances, from the bottom of the left-hand side above and the top of the right-and side:



And in Skelton's rather loose translation (p. 173), here is the first mention of this individual:

Albe-it, this conspiracye, by aduenture, as it fortuned, was disclosed by an estaungiere that dwelled in the contrey, whos name was Tharopes, in-so-moche that of enward abashment for thise tydinges Dionisius, sore affrayed by encheson that his hoste of people were not as yet commen over the watre vnto hym, by meanes of such frendes as he had there, prively he was conveyed and so brought over vnto the strenghe of his owne men of warre.

(Albeit, this conspiracy, by adventure, as it fortuned, was disclosed by a stranger that dwelled in the country, whose name was Tharopes; in as much as he was inwardly abashed by these tidings, Dionysus, sorely afraid by reason that his host of people were not as yet come over the water to him, by means of such friends as he had there, secretly he was conveyed and so brought to the strength of his own men of war.)

And later (I include only the sentence with his name):

Callyng vnto his pryncely remembraunce the grete kyndenes and benefight of his frynde Tharopes, which vnto hym had discovered this treason falsely contrived, by occasion whereof he advoided the daungeour and ieopardie of his owne life, determyned with hym-self by good aduertisement his feithfull and trew mynde nobly to rewarde, intrononysed hym with kyngly honour, crownyng hym with the roiall diademe of all / the londe of Trace, as prynce and gouernour that roialme to haue vndre his domynyon at his commaundement and pleasure.

(Calling to his princely remembrance the great kindness and benefit of his friend Tharopes, who to him had discovered this treason falsely contrived, by occasion whereof he avoided the danger and jeopardy of his own life, determined with himself it good advice nobly to reward his faithful and true mind, enthroned him with kingly honor, crowning him with the royal diadem of all the land of Thrace, as prince and governor, that kingdom to have under his dominion at his commandment and pleasure.)

This "Tharopes" is not quite "tarocco." Andrea bridges the gap by citing the 18th century German scholar Ernesti, who, in a footnote to his edition of Cicero's De Natura Deorum, spells the name "Tharocus", which Andrea assumes comes from an old manuscript of Diodorus. However I am not convinced that the Italian Renaissance knew such a manuscript. No such variant spelling is listed in the footnotes of modern editions of the Greek text. I prefer to go another route, although very much building on things Andrea has said in other essays.