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Spilkammeret (literally, "The Chamber of Games") is a privately owned
research archive and library, founded by K. Frank Jensen (me) in 1975, when the
first signs of a revival of interest for esotericism reached Denmark. Like in
most other European countries, occultism and related interests had only existed
within closed circles during most of the century. In the wake of the flower-power
era of the 1960’s, however, a growing interest for the intangible became apparent.
The declared purpose of Spilkammeret became to collect, preserve, register and
document "mantic tools", i.e. divinatory and symbolic systems, (mainly tarot and cartomancy decks),
manufactured and used during the 20th century". The archive currently contains about 1400 tarot/tarock decks,
600 cartomancy or fortune telling decks, plus a large number of miscellaneous items for divination, such as
dice and rune stones.
Additionally, the collection comprises about 2000 decks of playing cards.
Furthermore it includes a variety of games and game utensils, which in part can be
traced back to a divinatory origin. Spilkammeret’s library has more than 3000
books on related themes, plus a large correspondence archive.
The first exhibition, based upon material from the archive, took place in 1979
at the "National Library of Education" in Denmark. The exhibition was called
"Play and Prophecy" and pointed to relations between many traditional games and
systems for divination. The relatively short periods during which exhibitions
are shown in public institutions, inspired a more permanent solution, and
from 1984 to 1990, yearly thematic exhibitions based upon the archive, were open
to the public on my own newly acquired premises in the historic town of Roskilde, Denmark.
Photos from Spilkammeret linked here (thumbnails + links to bigger images).
This site designed & maintained by
Arnell's Art
All contents contributed by K. Frank Jensen
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