Which 4 decks would you "ideally" combine in a comparative tarot deck?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 20 Apr 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Rusty Neon	20 Apr 2003
Hi everyone ... The ongoing thread on the LS Comparative Tarot deck (which bundles minis of the LS Universal, Burdel pattern TdM, LS Tarot of the Sphynx, and LS Tarot of the Origins) has got me thinking (again) about which 4 mass production decks I would ideally like to bundle together on the same card (one-quarter of the card each), copyright assembly/publisher coordination issues aside. OK, this is super-subjective .... My 'ideal' comparative tarot deck would (as of this exact minute - but it can change in the next minute) be comprised of the following four decks (6 different lists). Of the combinations described in the six lists, the combinations in Lists 2, 3 and 4 would probably be most useful to me from a practical viewpoint. _____________ List 1: General 'ideal' (1) 1971 U.S. Games Rider deck (2) Thoth deck (the better photographed one, of course) (3) Conver 1760 TdM (Heron) (4) Marteau TdM (Dusserre) _______________ List 2: Foundations of 21st Century Divinatory Meanings (1) 1971 U.S. Games deck (2) Thoth (for Crowleyian and GD takes at the same time) (3) Grand Etteilla (Dusserre), or failing this, Grand Etteilla (Grimaud) (4) Medieval Scapini ____________________ List 3: 'Ideal' with focus on GD: (1) 1971 U.S. Games Rider deck (2) Thoth deck (the better photographed one, of course) (3) Gareth Knight's deck (take on Golden Dawn's tarot) (4) Gill Tarot **Dowson's _Hermetic Tarot_ also deserves a place. Replace the Gill with that one, perhaps. And then there are the Wang and Cicero decks .... If we have 8 decks in one, the pictures would be too small. :) ___________ List 4: 'Ideal' with focus on TdM Conver pattern decks: (1) Conver 1760 (Heron) (2) Conver 1760 (Lo Scarabeo) (3) Camoin/Jodo so-called 'restored' deck (4) Marteau (Dusserre) _____________ List 5: 'Ideal' with focus on French tarot tradition: (1) Conver 1760 (Heron) (2) Marteau (Dusserre) (3) Papus -- (Wirth is out because, as Diana has reminded me, the Wirth deck's minor arcana were add-ons commissioned by Stuart Kaplan.) (4) **a fourth deck --- hmm, I'm still thinking...... ______________ List 6 -- RWS This one is a 'work-in-progress' but perhaps: (1) 1971 Rider (2) St. Petersburg Russian (3) Napo (4) Connolly

Cerulean	20 Apr 2003
I need to think about A quite a bit because of the variation in designs even among city-states and regions. So my historical picks would differ from yours only because of my interest. So let me comment on B right now. B I am drawn to historical patterns of the di Gumppenberg line: 1. Trade Sites of Milan (1820-1830) Theatre of Milan and commerative sites of the city, double-figured, French pips for gaming 2. Corona Fererra circa 1830 (Iron Crown of Lombardy) Scenes of history surrounding the historic Iron Crown of Lombardy (used to crown the kings of Italy); double-figured, I believe French pips, as it was a game. 3. Gumppenberg 1810 (Neoclassical 1805-10 under Napoleon) Napoleanic neoclassical design influences with Star and Force as masculine, harkening back to Greco Roman legends, delicate and spare engraving. 4. Gumppeberg 1845 (Della Rocca style engravings) Fancy printing...I would choose not the reprinted Lo Scarabeo colors, but darker colors in other reprint editions.

Phoenix	20 Apr 2003
I think the major tarot schools: Rider-Waite, Conver Marseille, Thoth, and Visconti.

Rose	20 Apr 2003
If I had to pick four I would pick the original Rider-Waite, Conver Marseille,Thoth, and a collage deck like Voyager. What I would really like is a comparative deck that featured the orginal Rider-Waite, Conver Marseille, Thoth, and the fourth image picked from a variety of decks. Since some decks do a great job depicting a particular card, the fourth card would would be chosen because it illuminated a different aspect of the card's meaning. Decks like the Rock and Roll, Alchemical, Shakespearian, Tarot of the Spirit, Fey, Golden Dawn, Haindl, Navigator's,Rohrig, etc. could all be represented. Rose

Rusty Neon	20 Apr 2003
(1) Hi rose ... Your idea of a floating Fourth sounds very intriguing. (2) A comparative Etteilla deck would be interesting: an Etteilla I, an Etteilla II, an Etteilla III and an Egipicios Kier

Ravenswing	20 Apr 2003
Hi guys-- For the Geometric Tarot deck I'm designing, it just so happened that I used four decks as a background "framework" while contemplating the imaging for my card designs... From the east, for the airy Sword deck, I chose the Thoth deck. From the west, for the firey Wand deck, I chose the Deva deck.(For those of you unfamiliar with this deck, it is Thoth-ish and has a fifth suit that represents the spirit) From the west, for the watery Cup deck, I chose the Universal Waite deck. From the north, for the earthy Pentacle deck, I chose the Robin Wood deck. So far, this blend has suited me well. fly well cross-reference Raven

Cerulean	21 Apr 2003
I thought about my A choice. The misnamed Charles VI cards, attributed to Fererra...Lo Scarabeo might print a historical reproduction by 2004...(*sigh*). I believe their simple style might do well with a nongilded Visconti-Gold style deck, using a soft yellowish gold instead? So Fererra Charles VI/Brambilla style pips Visconti Gold Vachetta with decorative pips-1890? Rider Waite

HOLMES	21 Apr 2003
for rider, .. personally i would go with . the radiant rider the beginner tarot (sharman burke) the universal waite. (lo scarabeo) and the universal waite (if the aquatic tarot ever made it will be on here instead of the universal waite by mary hansons. ) the idea is not to use the original rider but to see differnt variations , i choose this format for these are the one that appeal to me the best.

Kiama	21 Apr 2003
Well, for my current 'Get out of the interpretation rut' search, I would combine some radically different decks, along with a traditional deck, so I could get the traditional idea of the card, but then get a wildly different representation of that card too! (Meaning the same though!) So, here are the decks I'd choose: Robin Wood Thoth Osho Zen Wheel of Change If I were to put a Rider Waite in instead of the Robin WOod, I'd probably change the third and fourth decks to something that seems to 'go' with the RWS a little better... Great thread Redwood! Kiama

Moongold	21 Apr 2003
Tarot de Marseilles de Grimaud Rider Waite Smith Shining Tribe Tarot of the Sephiroth Moongold

Diana	21 Apr 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Phoenix I think the major tarot schools: Rider-Waite, Conver Marseille, Thoth, and Visconti. I'm with Phoenix here, although perhaps I would replace the Conver with the Grimaud (as it's the most popular).

jema	21 Apr 2003
i like the list 4 you have there. only i would choose: Thoth gill golden dawn (cicero) cosmic tribe or a deeply personal mix of the 4 i most often read with: gill thoth spiral spirit

azuremariposa	21 Apr 2003
the "ideal" for me, would be: Robin Wood Shapeshifter Tarot Templar Tarot Universal Waite (or a similar deck) of course, i could think of at least 4 more ideals w/all the decks on my wish list...hehe many blessings! ~azure

ihcoyc	21 Apr 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Diana I'm with Phoenix here, although perhaps I would replace the Conver with the Grimaud (as it's the most popular). I'm in general agreement; I'd probably keep the Conver Marseille, and maybe substitute the 17th century Parisian Tarot for the Visconti.

WolfSpirit	21 Apr 2003
I have not really gotten into historical decks yet and when I ever do, I think I will only use them for study not really to read with. So I just choose 4 decks I love a lot and like to read with: tarot of the spirit: hmm only just got this deck but I get such good vibes from it I name it here with confidence halloween: have to have something like rws but don't like rws pictures - hence this one. animal wise glastonbury These two decks sometimes give an interesting different twist to a meaning.

truthsayer	21 Apr 2003
to me it would be interesting to do a comparative with themes like these-- feminist: motherpeace, daughters of the moon, transformational, goddess for the child of all ages: whimsical, inner child, halloween, children's self-published's: templar, wise woman, illuminated, fae german: rohrig, ananda, margarete peterson, 4th? computer generated: quest, tarot de paris, sacred path, ? egyptian sphynx, nefertari, ancient egyptian, ramses foil embossed nefertari, golden tarot of the tsar, mantegna, golden ? (it's a marseille style deck) collage voyager, victoria regina, gendron, ? can't seem to remember deck names tonight. a few days off line and it all starts to disappear! :( but that means i get to OD on AT the next weeek!!!!!! })

Phoenix	21 Apr 2003
But doesn't the Grimaud marseille have some changes that were not found on the earlier Conver decks? But I likw the Idea of having a comparative marseille deck. In it you could include the Conver, the Grimaud, the Hadar, and maybe the Fournier. There can also be a RWS themed one: the Rider-Waite, the Universal Tarot, the Sharman-Caselli, and Robin Wood. Hell, you could have one with all recolourings of the RWS: the Rider-Waite, the Universal Waite, the Albano-Waite, and the Radiant Rider-Waite. I even think that there are enough visconti decks for a comarative visconti one as well.

Mimers	21 Apr 2003
Going pratical, I would go with the flow here and say Universal Waite, Marseille, Thoth, and Visconti. I own all but the thoth deck. I have looked at it and it does not appeal to me. If I could have my own personalized comparative Tarot, it would be Vision Quest, Universal Waite, Gill and Ancestral Path. These are my favorite decks to read with.

ihcoyc	22 Apr 2003
I know: Manara Erotic Garden of Priapus Giger Rohrig

jmd	22 Apr 2003
I was thinking along the lines of ihcoyc, but had not yet come up nor erected such a list... In terms of four decks really combined for comparative purposes, my personal preferred options would be to have a number of comparative decks: 1 - Marseille variation (early): Conver Vieville Paris Hautot 2 - Other traditional: Conver Schaffhouse Visconti-Sforza Siciliano 3 - Marseille Key variations: Conver Marteau Camoin Hadar 4 - Modern deviations: Wirth Falconnier Waite/Colman-Smith Crowley/Harris 5 - 'Fuller' pip illustrations: Sola-Busca Vachetta Waite/Colman-Smith ??? I've probably missed some decks I would like to have for comparative purposes, but these five decks would certainly provide a wonderful comparative key... but why have only four decks per 'page'? Why not make it a giant deck with nine decks per card? Here my choice would be: Large 3 X 3 deck cards: Conver Vieville Schaffhouse Camoin Hadar Wirth Falconnier Waite/Colman-Smith Crowley/Harris ... I had to leave so many out!!!

Lady Raven	24 Apr 2003
Hm, that's a very good question, Rusty Neon... Very often, I feel, that none of the Tarot Decks I own, is the perfect one. Some day I would like to create my very special Tarot :) If I could make a deck from all the other already existing, I would look through and pick the cards of each Major and Minor Arcana position I like the best and that fits my ideas. As Hierophant I will choose probably the one from the Ancestral Path Tarot, because I like the idea of the Wise Women, the Sibyls as teachers. And maybe I would rename this card *The Teacher*. My favourite King Of Wands will be the one from the Barbara Walkers, because he's so good looking *g*. And for the place of the Hermit I like to take the one from the Greenwood Tarot - it's so peaceful !! And so on...

Logiatrix	24 Apr 2003
Hmmmmm... My standard comparitive deck would be much like some of the other suggestions here: Marseilles Rider-Waite Sola-Busca Thoth There are so many variations on the Marseilles and RWS that I will allow for each individual's personal preference on those--for a small additional fee (kind of like "up-sizing" your order at the drive-thru). :D I also had fun with a Pagan comparitive deck: Old Path Robin Wood Sacred Circle Witches (Reed) ...AND a Christian comparitive deck: Connolly Saints Templar (sshhh, don't say anything about the skulls and antlers) Tsar I'm still working on a Taoist/Buddhist/Zen comparitive tarot deck... ;)

The Which 4 decks would you "ideally" combine in a comparative tarot deck? thread was originally posted on 20 Apr 2003 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.