Lo Scarabeo's Dante Tarot

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 02 Mar 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

kayne	02 Mar 2002
I saw Lo Scarabeo's Dante Tarot in a bookshop today and I found the colours interesting and style unusual... didn't see it all of course... Does anyone have this deck? Perhaps it is more of a collectors deck than one to read with... What are the Minors like?

Strange2	02 Mar 2002
This is a fascinating deck, with beautiful dreamlike artwork in both the Majors and Minors. The Majors are based on Dante's "Convivio", an exposition of philosophical, religious, and political ideals. The Minors are based on Dante's famous 3-volume "Divina Commedia" or Divine Comedy. The Minors have full scenes, not pips. The suits are Bricks (wands), Flames (swords), Clouds (pentacles), and Lights (cups). The Bricks depict situations and characters of importance in Dante's life. The Flames present episodes from the Inferno, and Dante's descent through the Nine Circles of Hell. The Clouds show events from the Purgatorio, where souls reflect upon and atone for their earthly sins. The Lights depict events from the Paradiso, Dante's journey on the ascension into Heaven. For an *excellent* article on the Dante Tarot by Paula Gibbey, see the Tarot Passages site at: http://www.tarotpassages.com/danteart-pg.htm The Dante Tarot deck is well worth getting, not only for the evocative artwork but also for the wonderful way the themes from Dante's works are woven into the Tarot setting. This deck has definitely piqued my interest in reading Dante's works again.

catlin	04 Mar 2002
Hi, I ordered the Dante deck 3 times at my book shop: 2 copies for trade and one for my collection. I think you have to know quite a bit about the 2 Dante oeuvres which served as inspiration for this deck to use it best. I was toying around with the thought to use this deck for readings but I feel that my knowledge of Dante is too little, so I will just add it to my collection and see, when I will have more time to get deeper into it.

The Lo Scarabeo's Dante Tarot thread was originally posted on 02 Mar 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.