Question for the Marseilles expert

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 15 Aug 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Liliana	15 Aug 2002
I saw on ebay once awhile back a version of the Marseilles deck in French that had the backgrond of the minors different colors instead of plain white. Any clue which version this was? :THP

Liliana	15 Aug 2002
Nevermind, I figured out it was Fournier's Tarot of Marseilles, an intersting variation but Im sure certain experts wont find it pure enough lol :THP

jema	15 Aug 2002
i have the fournier and i like it! as for how "pure" it is - well, it don't really matter to me, i can follow the threads in the study group well enough with that one. so if you like it - grab it! somehow the fournier feels a lot warmer then many other marsielle decks. more alive. but it is not only the background in the minors that are different - i think all colour in all cards are different. i am thinking of adding the camoine deck to my collection though.

Lee	15 Aug 2002
I like the Fournier Marseilles too. In fact, I forgot to say in the Doubles thread, I bought two of them because they're hard to get in the U.S. (I think that was before I knew about Alida.) I don't know how purists would view it, but (and this is just going from general impressions) my impression is that the Minors, despite the colors, are accurate renditions of the Grimaud Marseilles, which I believe is the "standard" for Marseilles Minors in Europe (Europeans, please correct me!). So, those interpretive systems which rely on the specific curlicues in the Grimaud Marseilles would still be usable with the Fournier. Also, if you carefully compare the colors on the Majors and Courts between the Fournier and the Grimaud, I think most of the colors of the clothes are the same between them. I think most of the difference is in the backgrounds. This deck is much easier on the eyes than other Marseilles decks. -- Lee

jmd	15 Aug 2002
Irrespective of what the 'experts' may say, I consider the Fournier a 'true' Marseilles deck, even if I prefer others! (I am also reminded of a plaque my father's personal secretary had in one of his offices: 'Expert = df 'ex-' means 'has been', and 'spert' is 'a drip under pressure'). As to the the tinted background of the cards, I personally find that it does, as mentioned, make it easier on the eyes... of course, after one uses one of the other Marseilles for quite a while, it too becomes yellowed (and the early decks' white would not have been quite so white)!

The Question for the Marseilles expert thread was originally posted on 15 Aug 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.