Oswald Wirth
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[[Image:Oswald Wirth.jpg|thumb|right|Oswald Wirth]]
'''Oswald Wirth''' (1860–1943) was a [[Swiss]] [[occultism|occultist]], [[artist]] and [[author]]. He studied [[esotericism]] and [[symbolism]] with Stanislaus de Guaita, and created a set of [[Tarot]] trumps based on the [[Marseilles]] deck. His interests also included [[Freemasonry]] and [[astrology]].
Wirth is the artist responsible for the so-called [[Baphomet]] or [[Leviathan]] design of a [[goat]] head inside a [[pentagram]] that was modified for use as the logo for [[Anton LaVey]]'s [[Church of Satan]]. Wirth was not a Satanist; LaVey appropriated the illustration from a French encyclopedia of occultism by Maurice Bessey that reprinted Wirth's drawing as an interior illustration and also used it as a stamped device on the cover.
==Selected bibliography==
*''Introduction to the Study of Tarot: A beginner's guide to the symbolism and use of Tarot cards by one of the greatest tarot designers and theorists'' ISBN 0877285594
*''Tarot of the Magicians'' ISBN 0877286566
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[[Category:1860 births]]
[[Category:1943 deaths]]
[[Category:Swiss occult writers]]
[[Category:Occult writers]]
[[Category:Occultists]]
[[Category:Swiss writers]]
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