Lovers Tarot 10th Anniv-78 cards

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 19 Dec 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Cerulean	19 Dec 2003
Jane Lyle's 10th anniversary of her Lovers Tarot, art by Oliver Burston, now has 78 cards. The cards are shrunk down from the Majors only version to be a standard size that equals the Rider Waite in the yellow box from U.S. Games. Majors, courts and aces are fully illustrated in the style that reminds one of the medieval painting collage of the old majors only deck. Botticelli-style paintings come to mind: "Flora" is the Empress, although the background is changed from Prima Vera. The airy painted background is similar to the Predication Tarot or Merlin Tarot, lots of blue and white frames. Cards seem somewhat thinner than U.S. Games titles despite lamination. The book lists the minors in a Thoth-style description of keyword and grouping of all the numbers together, so that the aces, 2-10 of each suit are discussed in order of numbering. Each ace has one page of description, small picture and three or four paragraphs of text. (2 of Wands, 2 of Swords, 2 of Pentacles and 2 of Cups for example.) The 2-10 cards take up two pages each. The major descriptions follow the format of the Lovers Tarot when it was majors only. Picture on one page, two paragraphs of general meaning on the other page, Four pages follow with the About You Gift (General Meaning) and the Challenge (Reversed), followed by similar two descriptions about You, then Your Partner, The Relationship and The Future. This is for each major. The book is a total of 208 pages. Downside is art sources aren't listed. Some may find the blue text might be a little hard to read in dim light. But it's a pretty Rider Waite alternative in structure for the majors and the similarity to the Thoth in minor meanings is rather unusual to me. The other downside is minors 2-10 are pips without much decorative detail on the cards--the book is very helpful in helping you learn, though. I remember buying this majors-only years ago and using it for relational readings...it's a pretty deck. I might try using the 78 cards while waiting for the Golden Tarot...could be a nice alternative if you like historical art and inspired by Florentine Botticelli-style paintings. Mari Hoshizaki P.S. Found it at a local bookstore, Amazon has a few: supposed to be out in February 2004. I guess these might be a small run of advance or review copies. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0312309775/qid=1071819794/sr=1-16/ref=sr_1_16/002-8870492-9320050?v=glance&s=books English site: http://www.connections-publishing.com/product_list.asp?department_id=3

Asher	19 Dec 2003
Mari, thanks for posting this. I saw the box at my local independent bookstore and passed over it, thinking it was simply new packaging. I ran back this morning to pick it up! I love the original Lover's Tarot, because of its size (good for teaching), but never read with it (because of its size & that I prefer to read with a full deck). I am thrilled with this new edition! Although the outside box is rather flimsy, the card stock is quite nice and appears durable. I am just starting to venture into reading unillustrated pip cards, and I find these very attractive (as are the pips in the Tarot Reading gift set that I posted about a day or 2 ago). For those who are fans of collage decks, like me, this is a well done example. I only wish the artist, Oliver Burston, had been credited on the outside box (he has a small credit line inside the book) Asher

Cerulean	19 Dec 2003
I nearly bypassed this again, but the box packaging said "Now with 78 cards" and the mental "AHA" leaped out at me. I'm revisiting some art sources where I ran across into some of the figures that were in this deck... and so this deck seems to be very nostalgic to me. The design is less crowded than many photomontage decks and yes, I do know the art sources aren't as well-attributed as it could be...because Oliver Burston's image choices actually offer some enjoyable ideas as well. I think the mainly wistful and warm images can yield a classic, antique air and help people put some distance to their heartfelt questions--although Death, Tower and Devil are chosen for their characteristic grimness. But isn't the Devil somewhat humerously smirking over the lustful? Anyway, I like the sisterly tone of Jane Lyle in the writing. Maybe I'm reading a lot into this, as my first reading of the majors only was with my sister years ago...and we found it pretty and warm, though like a big picture snapshot of her situation at the time in a majors-only reading. Now with the suits and courts, I'm thinking of calling her to revisit any relational questions... Best wishes. Glad you like it, because I think for the family holidays, this might be a good choice for me, too... Mari H.

The Lovers Tarot 10th Anniv-78 cards thread was originally posted on 19 Dec 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.