Freemasonry made intelligible to its followers: The Apprentice’s Book

Joseph Paul Oswald Wirth (1860-1943) was a Swiss occultist, artist, and author. He studied esotericism and symbolism under Stanislas de Guaita, creating a cartomantic Tarot called “Les 22 Arcanes du Tarot Kabbalistique” in 1889. This deck, based on the Tarot de Marseille, incorporated occult symbolism and was the first in a series of occult and initiatory decks. Wirth also had interests in Freemasonry and Astrology, writing books on Freemasonry and gaining high positions within Masonic lodges. His most famous work is “The Tarot of the Magicians” published in 1927.