Richard
Just because de Gebelin had a crackpot theory about tarot doesn't mean that the Star can't be about Sirius and the Nile. Waite totally demolished the Egyptian origin nonsense. He did this so thoroughly that he even felt defensive about the Sphinxes in The World and The Chariot.
Another consideration is that Europeans were not totally ignorant of Egypt, well before the development of tarot (think Alexandria). For example, see http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/alexanderthegreat.htm. Why couldn't an Egyptian thematic element have been incorporated into a Tarot card?
Another consideration is that Europeans were not totally ignorant of Egypt, well before the development of tarot (think Alexandria). For example, see http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/alexanderthegreat.htm. Why couldn't an Egyptian thematic element have been incorporated into a Tarot card?