Huck
Rules can be complicated in Italian games
http://germini.altervista.org/
It's not easy to decipher, why cards 1, 2-5, 10, 13, 20, 28, 30-35, 36-40 have special value in this Minchiate version.
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Looking at the usual Minchiate Iconography, we have the following feature:
There's the "base of Tarot" presented at the cards 1-15, further at 6 not numbered cards, from which one is the usual Fool (=0) and the 5 others are the socalled Arie Star-Moon-Sun-Mondo-Tromba (usually in Tarot 16/17 - 20/21, but in Minchiate somehow ranked but not numbered 36-40).
... whereby Mondo (World) is below a card, which is a mix between Fama and Angel.
This group of 20 "traditional" cards differs from the usual Tarot version with 21 special cards beside Fool, that "two women" (Empress and Popess) and a pope are lost and instead 1 second emperor and 1 grand duke were added, so "21 - 3 + 2 = 20".
A further difference was created by presenting 3 virtues (the usual Temperance, Justice and Fortitudo) together at position 6-8 ... this change and the one lost figure moves Love to an unusual Nr. 5, the Wheel to Nr. 9, Chariot to 10 and 11-15 have the same order as in the Ferrarese Tarot.
The other 20 trump cards are constructed by 4 virtues at 16-19 (missing prudentia + 3 theological virtues, whereby interestingly Prudentia is positioned between Hope and the both others at 17), 4 elements at 20-23 and 12 zodiac signs in unusual row (24-35) with Gemini at highest position (35).
Taking it simply, then we have the usual Tarot version split in two groups at 1-15 and 36-40 and the free space (16 - 35) filled with 20 others symbols, a sort of "second Tarot" between the other, somehow merged between Tower (which is in the Minchiate an "exile of paradise") and the Star, beginning with Hope.
Minchiate 15 Tower
Florentine art ca. 1430 ... the association "exile of paradise" is justified)
Minchiate 16 Hope
Minchiate (36) Star
... one might remark, that somehow Star and Hope have a traditional similarity.
If one wishes to interpret the general "different Minchiate in contrast to the usual Tarot", then it seems, that the Florentines have with their version "extended the heaven" with a way, that leads to it, starting with Hope and some Prudentia and other virtues, exploring the elements and the zodiac, finally reaching the Star (which in the Minchiate case is a male king on horse - remember three holy magi in the Medici chapel) and the rest of the aries, which all somehow manifest the state, that heaven was reached.
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Well now looking at the different versicole and the different points for them during the game. ...
(will proceed)