Olympus Tarot?
Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 05 Dec 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.
| Kiama |
05 Dec 2002 |
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I have stumbled across a copy of the Olympus Tarot for only £10.99, which is relatively cheap for unopened, new decks in large bookstores. I am very tempted to buy it... But would it be worth it?
Dos anybody hav/know of thise deck, and would you recommend it?
Kiama
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| RiccardoLS |
05 Dec 2002 |
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I know about the deck, but I don't know if I can answer your question.
What would you want in this deck?
What purpose should it fulfill?
The deck is nice... good (nothing exceptional art), non-standard (not Rider Waite) structure, but it is quite easy anyway.
If You like Mythology it is very good... if You don't like it you would probably miss a lot, using it for readings.
Riccardo
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| Kiama |
06 Dec 2002 |
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Ah! It does look very nice... I usually dread buying a deck with unillustrated Minors, mainly cuz I feel as though I haven't got my money's worth! (Silly Kiama, I know!) I wouldn't want to read with the deck, cuz it would just be another one to add to my collection, and so far I only have one Greek Mythology deck which I can think of, which is the Mythic, and I didn't like that one very much... *Kiama ducks things being thrown at her* I really like the idea that the Minors are associated with different things in that way.. Places, Heros, Objects, Creatures... Great idea. I think I'll get this deck today... (I'm supposed to be going Christmas shopping for my friends and family, but a small pressie for me won't hurt... })
Riccardo: Congrats to you and all at Lo Scorabeo for some very very nice decks! (I got the Celtic Tarot by Gaudenzi and somebody else yesterday, and found it very very nice.) :*:*:*
Thanks for the links to the reviews and images!
Kiama
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| Cerulean |
13 Jul 2003 |
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I wanted to revisit this deck as a reading deck (offer in reading forum)...but I decided to do it 'comparatively.' Here's a pull...
1. Tarot of Mermaids (Rider-Waite Smith style meanings)
Seven of Pearls: (Pentacles)
Here's a gorgeous card where a mermaid is looking at a buried treasure chest. She is curious, intrigued as a classical mythical young mermaid who might be curious about the mortal world, maybe even attracted to the idea of becoming mortal above ground. To me it is looking at things of beauty. My first take: Hidden treasures and discoveries. Perhaps it also suggests things of value or trade later, in a different world.
LWB meaning: ownership, business, trade.
2. Olympus Tarot: (Marseilles structure)
Seven of Pentacles: (Things of Greco-Roman Mythology)
Apollo holds the shield with the head of Medusa. The Greeks run in terror, holding their eyes. To me, it a scene of escape, the crowd is running to avoid being turned to stone. My first take: what I would do to avoid horror or conflict, I would rather retreat.
LWB meaning: Terror
So if I were to take the meanings between terror and treasure, I am thinking of Medusa and how she was turned from a beauty into something monsterous. Her transformation in Ovid was in the appendix of the Horace Gregory translation. He writes that the symbolism of Medusa reminds the Greeks of the polar extremes of beauty and horror.
I know I don't want to live a life of such drama, even though these were escapist movies we watched this weekend.
I'm going to have to think about this. I was doing some mundane things mostly this weekend. But some of the more creative work I was enjoying was painting and and sketching. The theme of escape, treasure, discoveries and heroic stories this week is what I'd like to reflect on. Perhaps it more a creative attraction of adventure storytelling than an actual daily reflection.
My reaction: Mermaids is a peaceable deck and Olympus is a stirring, creative deck. For daily readings, I think I'd try comparison with Mermaids and Thoth...
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| Shade |
15 Jul 2003 |
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I bought the Olympus tarot because I am a huge fan and student of greek mythology and had previousl;y been a little disappointed by the myth decks available. The mythic tarot and rennaisance tarot both feature one myth per suit on the minor arcana which I felt was rather limiting. I wanted to see more of the gods heroes and monsters tha these decks were able to feature. Te Olympus tarot really makes use of the range of teh cast of characters. Any theme deck is usually missing one essential thing I wish they could have added and in this deck it was Circe but you can't accomodate everyone.
I have yet to use it as a reading deck. As has been stated before the cards don't have standard tarot interpretations. The image on thhe card conveys the meaning in the LWB perfectly but often it's a totally new direction for that card. As I detest looking things up while reading for another person it will be a long time before I read fore otehrs with it.
If you are interested in classical mythology you might also want to get the Etruscan tarot, the illustrations in many cases have been transferred from ancient pottery and walls.
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| Cerulean |
15 Jul 2003 |
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on the Etruscan. The Olympus and Etruscan reviews at Tarotpassages.com are helpful and I find them interesting, even a year or so later.
My response to the Etruscan has it's own story...so I'm working with Olympus and Mermaids in a new way. Some frustration...maybe it's a creative step.
Thanks again
Mari_Hoshizaki
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| truthsayer |
15 Jul 2003 |
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if you are interested in mythological/historical type decks, try the neferteri. it's got gold foil on it and it's beautiful. if you want a sturdier deck, the sphynx is the mirror twin of the neferteri. i love both of these decks. i have the etruscan but i don't like it as well as the other 2.
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| Shade |
23 Jul 2003 |
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Just did a reading with the Olympus after watching the TV movie The Odyssey (not too shabby). I had expected to either never use the cards and just keep it as a collector deck or read with it but use only its interpretations as I assumed standard tarot would be completely incompatible. I was pleasantly surprised thaht the deck read well as a standard deck. The oly card I don't flow with yet is Hestia as the Tower... most of the decisions I can flow with but not that one.
On a completely (sp?) random note I noticed that this deck, like other greek influenced decks feaures many more nude men than women (there are a couple of Nymphs but that's about it for the ladies). It's nice to see things shift a bit since many decks (especially by Lo Scarabeo) have nude women popping up all er the deck but the guys stay covered up. This also made the deck consistant with Greek art.
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| Cerulean |
23 Jul 2003 |
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for me. If I choose another Greco-Roman theme deck, mostly it pulls a good reading in superficial themes or stories. But I wanted it for more, if I could do deep comparative readings.
I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
When I to try to use it repeatedly with a modern deck, I find my associations with the Olympus overrides most of the other decks because of my fresh or stronger associations. One or two simple readings may come up with good allegories for me.
But I find over the long haul, it's not what other people wanted in their readings. Only once, out of my theme decks, did someone choose the Dante. And it took a long time to put together the reading...but the theme of the Dante fit the reading, a look at a career change.
I wouldn't use the Olympus to read with an Egyptian theme deck--I would use the Etruscan and have found Etruscan-Egyptian to be a pretty spread. But right now I'm not drawn to the staticness of Egyptian mythology or some of the verses in the one small Egyptian Book of the Dead translation. My preference only.
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The Olympus Tarot? thread was originally posted on 05 Dec 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.
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