Public domain tarot images?

[alterego]

I'm trying to come up with some simple easy to use software for readings, and I'd like to include a default deck with it. However, I'd like it to be free, so I can't just scan my deck and post a link, nor acquire the proper rights :P ...
As it is now, it's relatively easy to add your own deck (provided you have some way of scanning it), for your own personal use, but it won't be very functional without a deck included by default..

I've read that the Rider-Waite deck imagery is public domain in the US, but not in Europe until 2020 or so...

Are there any global (well, at least eu and us) public domain tarot images I could freely use ?

[SphinYote]

I don't have an answer off the top of my head, but you could go to the tarot forum at:

http://www.tarotforum.net/

Someone there, or maybe another one of our mutual members between here and there could probably answer your question.

Good luck

Yote

[alterego]

I found some :
The Marseilles deck probably is copyright free. (possibly just the name 'marseilles tarot' is copyrighted). I can't find any more authoritative info, but since it's rather old it should be ok.
Also, the Aquatic tarot seems to be redistributable for non-commercial use.

Could anyone confirm this?

Posting in case someone else would like to know .

[WynterWynd]

http://freeware.esoterica.free.fr/html/freecards.html#ta

Looks like there are quite a few in there

[Godgifu]

I'm not too familiar with European copyright laws... if you have your own copy of an old enough deck you can use the images, but if someone else (like a museum) owns the deck, any images of their cards belong to them. So, for example, the Marseilles deck would only be free for you to use if you scanned in an authentic 18th century version you yourself had acquired (or used older photographs that were no longer in copyright.)

When I made my book The Cartomancer's Key and wanted to include illustrations, I just drew my own copies of historical card decks (via a printed picture and a sheet of tracing paper on top.) That's a trick often used by people making books for things like costume history, where they want to provide historical examples without paying museums for the rights to their paintings: the content of the old paintings isn't under copyright, just photographs of the actual work; so to make your own drawing of it is fine.