In short

Card scans
Public domain. Marked with the Public Domain Mark 1.0.
Old books
Public domain. Our transcriptions are free to reuse under CC0 1.0.
Our writing
CC BY 4.0. Quote, share and adapt it, with credit to Imaginalis and a link to the page.
Fonts
SIL Open Font License 1.1.

Why the 1909 deck and Waite's book are free, country by country, and what the "Rider-Waite" trademark means, is on the page Is the Rider-Waite tarot in the public domain?

The 78 card scans

Every card image is a scan of the Pam-A printing, made around 1910, of the deck Pamela Colman Smith drew in 1909 for Arthur Edward Waite. The scans come from Wikimedia Commons, from the higher-quality set a contributor uploaded in April 2024. Commons gives the Japanese site muzendo.jp as their source and tags them public domain.

Smith died in 1951 and Waite in 1942. The deck was published in 1909, so it is in the public domain in the United States. In the United Kingdom and the European Union it has been free since 1 January 2022, seventy years after Smith's death. A faithful copy of a public-domain picture gains no new copyright in the European Union, under article 14 of the 2019 Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market.

We crop the white scanner glass from the edges without re-encoding the image, and make smaller copies for the page. Nothing is retouched or recoloured. Each card page links to its scan's file on Commons and to our full-size JPEG.

Drawn by
Pamela Colman Smith, 1909 (died 1951)
Printing
Pam-A, about 1910
Scans
Wikimedia Commons, uploaded 3–6 April 2024, from muzendo.jp
Licence
Public domain (Commons: PD-old-auto-expired); our copies carry the Public Domain Mark
Checked
28 October 2026
All 78 scans and their files on Commons
  1. The FoolCommons file
  2. The MagicianCommons file
  3. The High PriestessCommons file
  4. The EmpressCommons file
  5. The EmperorCommons file
  6. The HierophantCommons file
  7. The LoversCommons file
  8. The ChariotCommons file
  9. StrengthCommons file
  10. The HermitCommons file
  11. Wheel of FortuneCommons file
  12. JusticeCommons file
  13. The Hanged ManCommons file
  14. DeathCommons file
  15. TemperanceCommons file
  16. The DevilCommons file
  17. The TowerCommons file
  18. The StarCommons file
  19. The MoonCommons file
  20. The SunCommons file
  21. JudgementCommons file
  22. The WorldCommons file
  23. Ace of WandsCommons file
  24. Two of WandsCommons file
  25. Three of WandsCommons file
  26. Four of WandsCommons file
  27. Five of WandsCommons file
  28. Six of WandsCommons file
  29. Seven of WandsCommons file
  30. Eight of WandsCommons file
  31. Nine of WandsCommons file
  32. Ten of WandsCommons file
  33. Page of WandsCommons file
  34. Knight of WandsCommons file
  35. Queen of WandsCommons file
  36. King of WandsCommons file
  37. Ace of CupsCommons file
  38. Two of CupsCommons file
  39. Three of CupsCommons file
  40. Four of CupsCommons file
  41. Five of CupsCommons file
  42. Six of CupsCommons file
  43. Seven of CupsCommons file
  44. Eight of CupsCommons file
  45. Nine of CupsCommons file
  46. Ten of CupsCommons file
  47. Page of CupsCommons file
  48. Knight of CupsCommons file
  49. Queen of CupsCommons file
  50. King of CupsCommons file
  51. Ace of SwordsCommons file
  52. Two of SwordsCommons file
  53. Three of SwordsCommons file
  54. Four of SwordsCommons file
  55. Five of SwordsCommons file
  56. Six of SwordsCommons file
  57. Seven of SwordsCommons file
  58. Eight of SwordsCommons file
  59. Nine of SwordsCommons file
  60. Ten of SwordsCommons file
  61. Page of SwordsCommons file
  62. Knight of SwordsCommons file
  63. Queen of SwordsCommons file
  64. King of SwordsCommons file
  65. Ace of PentaclesCommons file
  66. Two of PentaclesCommons file
  67. Three of PentaclesCommons file
  68. Four of PentaclesCommons file
  69. Five of PentaclesCommons file
  70. Six of PentaclesCommons file
  71. Seven of PentaclesCommons file
  72. Eight of PentaclesCommons file
  73. Nine of PentaclesCommons file
  74. Ten of PentaclesCommons file
  75. Page of PentaclesCommons file
  76. Knight of PentaclesCommons file
  77. Queen of PentaclesCommons file
  78. King of PentaclesCommons file

The old books

The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911)

Waite's guide to the deck was published in London by William Rider & Son at the end of 1910, with 1911 on the title page. We began with the proofread text on English Wikisource, which was made from a scan of the 1922 Rider reprint, and checked it word by word against a scan of a 1911 copy. We took only the book's text: none of Wikisource's headers or notes.

Base text
English Wikisource, every page validated
Check scan
The 1911 printing at the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica, Amsterdam, via Source Library (used for checking only)
Figures
The two figures on pages 10 and 305, scans of the 1918 facsimile on Commons: p. 10, p. 305
Status
Public domain: in the US, published before 1931; in the UK and the EU, the text since 2013 and the plates since 2022
Our text
Free to reuse under CC0 1.0
Checked
28 October 2026

The figure on page 10 is a watermark that Waite took from Harold Bayley's A New Light on the Renaissance (1909). We have not yet confirmed the year Bayley died; until we do, its status in the UK and the EU is open.

Where we differ from Wikisource

Where the Wikisource text and the 1911 printing disagree, we follow the 1911 printing. These are the 12 places, each read on the scan. Waite's own spelling and slips stay as printed.

p. 32
Wikisource has “Diamonds in modern cards; Cups”; the 1911 printing has “Diamonds in modern cards: Cups”.
p. 76
Wikisource has “of the mystic Temple and the veil”; the 1911 printing has “of the mystic Temple, and the veil”.
p. 115
Wikisource has “gracious gifts of the poet we have them”; the 1911 printing has “gracious gifts of the poet: we have them”.
p. 136
Wikisource has “A great, radiant, star of eight rays”; the 1911 printing has “A great, radiant star of eight rays”.
p. 168
Wikisource has “another realm than this; I have said that;”; the 1911 printing has “another realm than this;”.
p. 224
Wikisource has “behind the Lesser Arcana Divinatory Meanings:”; the 1911 printing has “behind the Lesser Arcana. Divinatory Meanings:”.
p. 290
Wikisource has “Unexpected advancement for military man.”; the 1911 printing has “Unexpected advancement for a military man.”.
p. 290
Wikisource has “Consolation, cure. end of the business.”; the 1911 printing has “Consolation, cure, end of the business.”.
p. 319
Wikisource has “and—as matter of curiosity”; the 1911 printing has “and—as a matter of curiosity”.
p. 322
Wikisource omits the entry number V (Chatto); the 1911 scan prints it.
p. 331
Wikisource has “Trumps Maor”; the 1911 printing has “Trumps Major”.
p. 337
Wikisource has “Clej du tirage”; the 1911 printing has “Clef du tirage”.

Pictures from before 1909

The essays in the Imaginalis app show older pictures beside the cards: the Marseille cards, Blake, Bruegel and others. All of these works are in the public domain. Using a photograph of one on a website is another question, because the museum or library that made the photograph may set its own terms. Before any of these goes on this site, we check those terms for commercial use. None is on the site yet. As of 28 October 2026:

Free to use (14)

Public domain, and the file comes from a holder that allows commercial use, or from no holder that restricts it.

  1. Athanasius Kircher, the Tree of Life with its ten spheres, from Oedipus Aegyptiacus, 1652.File on Commons (PD-old-100), from a Commons user's own photograph, rights released.
  2. Follower of Hieronymus Bosch, The Conjurer, c. 1500–1525. Musée municipal, Saint-Germain-en-Laye.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Musée municipal, Saint-Germain-en-Laye. We found no reuse terms from the museum.
  3. Hendrick ter Brugghen, Heraclitus, 1628. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.File on Commons (PD-old-100-expired, cc-zero), from Rijksmuseum. The Rijksmuseum releases its public-domain images under CC0.
  4. Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Harvesters, 1565. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-100-expired; the Met: Public Domain (Open Access)), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Met: Open Access images are CC0.
  5. The Chariot, from the Visconti di Modrone tarot, Milan, mid-1400s. Beinecke Library, Yale University.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1480), from Beinecke Library, Yale (catalogue image). Yale: open access, no restrictions on public-domain images.
  6. The heavens in order, from Peter Apian's Cosmographia, Antwerp, 1539.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-100), from a reproduction in Edward Grant, Isis 78 (1987).
  7. The Wheel of Fortune, from the Carmina Burana manuscript, c. 1230. Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich.File on Commons (PD-scan, PD-old-100), from Münchener DigitalisierungsZentrum, for the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek. BSB: this manuscript under the Public Domain Mark 1.0. Credit with it: München, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Clm 4660.
  8. Waite's diagram of the method, from The Pictorial Key to the Tarot. The Significator faces left.File on Commons (PD-old-70-expired (Waite d. 1942; published 1910/1922)), from an uploader's own scan of the 1922 Rider reprint of Waite's book.
  9. William Blake, Air, from For Children: The Gates of Paradise, 1793. Yale Center for British Art.File on Commons (Public domain. Commons: PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923, deathyear=1827; YCBA: Public Domain (CC0 rights URL).), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Yale Center for British Art. Yale: open access, no restrictions on public-domain images.
  10. William Blake, Earth, from For Children: The Gates of Paradise, 1793. Yale Center for British Art.File on Commons (Public domain. Commons: PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923, deathyear=1827; YCBA: Public Domain (CC0 rights URL).), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Yale Center for British Art. Yale: open access, no restrictions on public-domain images.
  11. William Blake, Fire, from For Children: The Gates of Paradise, 1793. Yale Center for British Art.File on Commons (Public domain. Commons: PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923, deathyear=1827; YCBA: Public Domain (CC0 rights URL).), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Yale Center for British Art. Yale: open access, no restrictions on public-domain images.
  12. William Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, plate 4, 1790s. Library of Congress, Rosenwald Collection.File on Commons (PD-old-100), from Library of Congress, Rosenwald Collection.
  13. William Blake, Water, from For Children: The Gates of Paradise, 1793. Yale Center for British Art.File on Commons (Public domain. Commons: PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923, deathyear=1827; YCBA: Public Domain (CC0 rights URL).), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Yale Center for British Art. Yale: open access, no restrictions on public-domain images.
  14. Young Parzival meets the knights, from Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, 1467. Burgerbibliothek Bern.File on Commons (PD-old-100), from e-codices, for the Burgerbibliothek Bern. e-codices: images marked public domain may be used without restriction, also commercially. Credit with it: Burgerbibliothek Bern, Cod. AA 91, f. 21r (e-codices).

Free to use, with a credit (2)

Public domain, but a photographer or restorer asks to be named.

  1. Edward Burne-Jones, The Mirror of Venus, 1870s. Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, Lisbon.File on Commons (PD-art-old-100-expired (Burne-Jones d. 1898). The uploader also tags the photograph self, cc-by-sa-4.0; under Commons' PD-Art policy a faithful photograph of a 2D public-domain work carries no new copyright. Chosen over the PD-Art-only scan (File:Burne-Jones, Edward - The Mirror of Venus - 1875 - hi res.jpg, 2132×1294), which is too noisy to fit 150 KB.), from a photograph by the Commons user Yelkrokoyade (2015), CC BY-SA 4.0. Credit with it: Photo: Yelkrokoyade, CC BY-SA 4.0.
  2. Sidney Hall, Aquarius, the Water-Bearer, from Urania's Mirror, a set of star cards, London, 1825. Library of Congress.File on Commons (PD-old-100-expired), from Library of Congress (cph.3g10072), restored by Adam Cuerden. Credit with it: Library of Congress; restoration by Adam Cuerden. The restorer asks for a credit.

Held back: the holder restricts commercial use (10)

The paintings are in the public domain, and in the EU, the UK and the US a faithful photograph of one probably carries no new right. But the holders ask for a licence or a fee, so these stay off the site until we have a licence or another photograph.

  1. Jan Cossiers, Prometheus Carrying Fire, 1637. Museo del Prado, Madrid.File on Commons (PD-art-old-100-expired), from Museo del Prado. The Prado asks for its authorisation for commercial use; we could not load its legal notice to confirm.
  2. Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Haymaking, 1565. The Lobkowicz Collections, Prague.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1569), from a 2018 press photograph by Petr Weigl (Kunsthistorisches Museum exhibition) of a painting in the Lobkowicz Collections. Press photographs are usually cleared for news use only.
  3. Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Gloomy Day, 1565. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.File on Commons (PD-art, PD-old-100-expired), from Web Gallery of Art, of a Kunsthistorisches Museum painting. Kunsthistorisches Museum: its photographs need permission and a fee for any use.
  4. Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Hunters in the Snow, 1565. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923, deathyear=1569), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Kunsthistorisches Museum: its photographs need permission and a fee for any use.
  5. Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Tower of Babel, 1563. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923, deathyear=1569), from Google Arts & Culture, for the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Kunsthistorisches Museum: its photographs need permission and a fee for any use.
  6. Pietro Perugino, The Delivery of the Keys (detail), 1481–82. Sistine Chapel, Vatican City.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1523), from a Commons user's own photograph (2011), with no licence of its own. Vatican Museums: reproduction of their images is forbidden. Not a Vatican photograph, but the Vatican claims control and is outside the EU.
  7. Rembrandt, Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee, 1633. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston; stolen in 1990.File on Commons (PD-Art-two-auto, 1669), from Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Gardner Museum: downloads under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0; commercial use licensed through Bridgeman. The painting was stolen in 1990, so no other photograph exists.
  8. The four living creatures, from the Book of Kells, about 800. Trinity College Dublin.File on Commons (PD-art), from a scan from Bernard Meehan, The Book of Kells (1994). Trinity College Dublin: publication of MS 58 images needs written approval.
  9. William Bell Scott, Una and the Lion, c. 1860. National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1890), from Art UK, for the National Galleries of Scotland. National Galleries of Scotland: public-domain images under CC BY-NC; commercial use by licence.
  10. William Holman Hunt, The Light of the World, 1900–04. St Paul's Cathedral, London.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1910), from Art UK, a photograph credited to St Paul's Cathedral. Art UK: for commercial use, ask the rights holder.

To be replaced (9)

Files from BnF Gallica, from Italian public holdings, from Tate, or with no known source. We will look for other copies of these works, or other works, before any goes on the site.

  1. Charles de La Fosse, Clytie Changed into a Sunflower, 1688. Château de Versailles, Grand Trianon.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-100-1923), from Web Gallery of Art; probably a photograph by the Réunion des musées nationaux. French national museums database: "utilisation soumise à autorisation".
  2. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Proserpine, 1874. Tate, London.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1882 PD-Art-copyright-notice-Tate-Britain), from Google Arts & Culture, a Tate photograph (2011). Tate: website terms of use. A later version of the painting, at Birmingham Museums, is released under CC0.
  3. Giotto, Temperance, about 1306. Scrovegni Chapel, Padua.File on Commons (PD-Art, PD-old-auto-expired, deathyear=1337), from Web Gallery of Art. Italy's Cultural Heritage Code (arts. 107–108): fees for commercial reproduction of publicly held works. The Scrovegni Chapel belongs to the City of Padua.
  4. Hercules at the crossroads, Umbrian or Sienese school, about 1505.File on Commons (PD-Art), from rodon.org; the holder is not named anywhere we looked. With no known holder or source, the file cannot be checked.
  5. Jean Dodal, L'Amoureux (detail), from a Tarot de Marseille printed in Lyon, early 1700s. Bibliothèque nationale de France.File on Commons (PD-France PD-US-expired PD-old-assumed), from BnF Gallica. BnF: commercial reuse of Gallica images needs a licence and a fee.
  6. Jean Dodal, Le Fol, from a Tarot de Marseille printed in Lyon, early 1700s. Bibliothèque nationale de France.File on Commons (PD-France PD-US-expired PD-old-assumed), from BnF Gallica. BnF: commercial reuse of Gallica images needs a licence and a fee.
  7. Justice, numbered VIII, from the tarot of Jean Noblet, Paris, mid-1600s. Bibliothèque nationale de France.File on Commons (PD-old-assumed, PD-US-expired, PD-France), from BnF Gallica. BnF: commercial reuse of Gallica images needs a licence and a fee.
  8. La Maison Dieu, the House of God, from the tarot of Jean Noblet, Paris, mid-1600s. Bibliothèque nationale de France.File on Commons (PD-old-assumed, PD-US-expired, PD-France), from BnF Gallica. BnF: commercial reuse of Gallica images needs a licence and a fee.
  9. Le Pendu, the Hanged One, from the tarot of Jean Noblet, Paris, mid-1600s. Bibliothèque nationale de France.File on Commons (PD-old-assumed, PD-US-expired, PD-France), from BnF Gallica. BnF: commercial reuse of Gallica images needs a licence and a fee. The Noblet deck is known from the BnF copy only.

Fonts

Headings
Goudy Bookletter 1911, by Barry Schwartz (2010), under the SIL Open Font License 1.1: licence file
Text
Libre Caslon Text, by the Libre Caslon Text Project Authors (2018), under the same licence: licence file

Our own work

The paper textures, the torn edges and the small ornaments were made for Imaginalis, and so was the writing on every page. Please ask before reusing them. Quoting a passage with a link to its page is always fine.

What is not here

We use no images from the 1971 recoloured edition, and no card backs or boxes from later publishers, which have rights of their own. We don't copy text from sacred-texts.com, whose files carry a non-commercial notice, or from Project Gutenberg's Illustrated Key to the Tarot, which is L. W. de Laurence's 1918 copy of Waite's book.

If you hold rights in something on this site, or you find a mistake here, please write to us; the address is on the about page.