The Tarocchino Mitelli is a landmark deck in the history of Italian tarot, designed and engraved in copper by Bolognese artist Giuseppe Maria Mitelli in 1660. Created specifically for card play rather than divination, it offers a rare and valuable window into early tarot as a cultural and recreational practice. This limited edition from Lo Scarabeo's Anima Antiqua series, one of only 2,999 numbered copies, faithfully reproduces the structure and artwork of the original.
 
The deck departs from standard 78-card tarot in several notable ways. It follows the traditional Bolognese tarocchino format of 62 cards, omitting the Twos through Fives from all suits. The Major Arcana include two Hierophants (one standing, one seated) and no High Priestess, reflecting regional iconographic tradition. No card titles appear anywhere in the deck, with only the pip cards carrying Roman numerals, and the artwork throughout showcases Mitelli's masterful engraved style, a highlight of seventeenth-century Bolognese printmaking.
 
Cards measure approximately 4.75 x 2.75 inches, narrower than modern tarot proportions and consistent with historical tarocchino dimensions. They are printed on a moderate-weight cardstock with a lightly textured, antique papyrus-like surface that evokes the material quality of early printed decks, with fine reproduction of Mitelli's original etched lines. The deck is presented in a sturdy top-lifting hard box and includes Lo Scarabeo's multilingual booklet in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and German.
 
An essential acquisition for collectors, historians, and anyone drawn to tarot before its esoteric reinvention, the Tarocchino Mitelli is as historically significant as it is beautiful.