Russian Tarot of St Pete or Egorov?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 05 May 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Oni	05 May 2004
I am thinking of getting the Russian Tarot of St Petersburg, cause i live in St Petersburg, FL USA and i am n2 slavic culture but then someone tould me about the Egorov tarot, wich i looked at and it looks nice to with bigger pictures and non black borders but tell me folks what do u think is a better deck?

raeanne	06 May 2004
Hi Oni, I have the Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg. The artwork on this deck is spectacular but I need a magnifying glass to really appreciate it. The detail in these pictures is incredible! I haven't seen the Egorov deck so I can't give a comparison between these two. If you like Russian minature art, you will like the Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg.

Thea Lynx	06 May 2004
Hi OnI I have no knowledge of the Egorov deck, but I do have the Russian St. Petersburg - gorgeous deck. The pics are very, very small and it is very easy to miss detail, so if the other deck is just as appealing but better on the size of the pics you may wish to go with it. I had the Russian for at least a year before I worked with it and now I wonder why I waited for so long. It was wonderful. I had gotten the Medieval Scapini at the same time and found the gold tint caught light in a very distracting manner - made it not anywhere near as pleasant to work with as Russian. I would not trade my Russian for anything. Thea Lynx

heksje	22 May 2004
Hi Oni, Did you decide jet on which deck to get? I got the russian tarot of sint petersburg just a while ago. After a long time searching for a deck that i connected to. I have used it already a lot of times and it works perfectly for me. It's a really positive deck (apart from the death card which is really scary and grose) and the colours are even better in real than on the scans I saw on the internet. The only 'setback' i found with the deck is that the edges are not really well done. When you shuffle them a lot the golden borders of the cards get a bit damaged. But still it's my absolute favorite! I'm really surprised that there seem te be so few people who use it.

Emily	22 May 2004
I like the Russian tarot of st Petersburg. The colours seems to shine off the black like jewels, and although small its still very readable. It follows the Rider Waite very closely so if you're familiar with RW its fairly easy to read with. I've had this deck for a while now and have done a few readings with it but I've not really had the time to sit down and get to know it properly - hopefully soon . :)

lunakasha	22 May 2004
I have been wanting the Russian Tarot of SP for a LOOOOONG time now....thanks Emily, Thea and heksje for reminding me of what I am missing! :D I would be interested in seeing the Egorov...anyone know where we can see them??? Thanks! :D Luna

Oni	24 May 2004
thanks alot everyone for your comments! no i have not brought ither one yet. i am still decieding. the Egorov can be seen here http://www.wicce.com/egorov.html it seems to look like the russian tarot but with bigger pics.

lunakasha	24 May 2004
NICE pictures....thanks Oni!!! I think I might need to add the Egorov to my wishlist now!!! It just never ends....:eek: My name is Luna and I am a tarotholic..... :laugh:Luna

Mimers	24 May 2004
They have it at the Alida store! :D

BlueLotus	09 Jul 2004
I have had The Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg on my on-again-off-again wish list, until I came across The Egorov Tarot, then I had no doubt in my mind that I want to get the latter. Actually the pictures on the deck are much larger and very detailed, even the minors have some fully illustrated gorgeous artwork . Does anyone else like and use this deck? What do you think of it?

Cerulean	09 Jul 2004
The paintings are very like Russian Fairy tales and I find them larger than the St. Petersberg, very clean. Each scene has a different background color according to the suit. For instance, Wands are mostly pink and rose against a smooth burgundy background, the cups have many yellow and light blue details against an olive background, swords have many blue and white details against dark blue and the coins have rosy brown and orange colorations against a black background. Since I was struck by the dominance of the coloring according to suit, this was a good change for me. The style is similar to the Lo Scarabeo Tarot of the Tsar deck, but more scenes are similar to folklore or fairy-tale style scenes. I found a firebird on one card, small plants or cats or stylistic details that remind me of old fashioned "Russian Lacquer" boxes or cloisonne. Decks such as the Medieval Scapini can cause one to squint and the Russian takes a magnifying glass after a long day...so I appreciate somewhat larger scenes on a standard size card. The LWB is clear on tarot meanings, but you would have to find other books on Russian Fairy Tales to find appropriate tales...still, I like the old style designs and clear mood of each scene. If I sort the deck in the order that the LWB states, I would put all the ones together, twos, etc., and read the descriptions. I know there are other Russian-language tarot decks on Tarotgarden.com, but I like this deck for being reasonable cost and having the instructions and titles in English... Full deck scans of Egorov: http://www.gambler.ru/sukhty/decks02/d00617/d00617.htm Russian St. Petersburg scans: http://www.tarot.com/about-tarot/decks/browsedecks.php?newdeck=25 Hope you enjoy the comparison. Regards, Cerulean

zoso	09 Jul 2004
I got the Russian of St. Petersburg just the other day and since then, haven;t used my Scapini at all. The colors and detail pop out of the black background; I find the contrast very appealing and it seems to make the images more significant. Plus, the cards are small enough to fit in my hands properly--shuffling is easier! I agree with the Scapini's gold and silver to be distracting; and although it was my treasured deck (probably because it was my only one) the Russian deck has beat it out.

tao51	09 Jul 2004
The Russian Tarot of St. Petersbug is by far more elegant. I place it with some of the top artistic cards. Egorov was nice but at the price of $200 (amazon's price) I would rather put my money elsewhere. JMHO--Tao

Frank Hall	09 Jul 2004
What a striking contrast between these two decks;I've had the Egorov for years,recently added the Russian Tarot and book,which really illuminates the deck.Both are excellent for their meditative depth.and for their play of color.Egorov's Fool is ready for his long journey, with that bag of glowing water over his back, and with that five-star'd tree behind him.He 's on the edge of the abyss,ready to fall.Not O, but XXI,after Papus' order.On the whole,Egorov's images are boldly dynamic,almost leaping off surfaces, as with Knight of Cups.The Russian Tarot is bold,too,dynamic and detailed,but focussed in by the golden bordering.

Cerulean	09 Jul 2004
and $20.00 at Alidastore.com, although shipping and handling is a few dollars more. Tarotgarden gets it to U.S. residents a little faster. Best wishes, Cerulean Mari

Oni	13 Jul 2004
soon i will have the russian tarot, thanks to a certain very kinda and thoughtful person who knows who she is. so i will let u know what i think of the deck onces it comes in the mail. looking at the scans of the full decks now in comparsion i think i will like the russian better cause i like the black borders. i will post again when it arrives and i do some readings with it. Joy Joy

Oni	14 Jul 2004
and i love it will post when i use it

Rusty Neon	06 Feb 2005
I received the Egorov deck this week. I can't believe I held off for so long, which had been mainly because I've never seen it available directly in Canada and I hadn't yet gone 'afar' for tarot purchases. Coming from an Eastern Slavic background, I had always wanted a tarot deck with art themes from that geographical area. I had been bothered by the small size, low-contrast illustrations on the St. Pete tarot deck, so have never bought it even though it is easy to obtain. I had admired the Egorov deck from its scans on the Net for quite a long time. The card images look nicer in person than on the Net. Alexander Egorov, the creator of the Egorov deck injects some of his own esoteric principles, but overall the deck is close enough to the RWS imagery to be used straight out of the box. This is a blessing anyway, because there is nothing in the LWB to explain Egorov's imagery; the LWB just provides divinatory meanings. I'd consider this deck more of an art-twist variant of the RWS, but it could certainly be used for readings by those drawn to the deck by its artwork. The art is reminiscent of the kind that one would find in a Russian fairy tale books, so it has a traditional Eastern Slavic flavour to it. The cards have gold colour background, but happily, for someone like me who is somewhat allergic to metal leaf and metallic inks, it appears that there neither one nor the other was used to make the gold colour backgrounds. Nonetheless, the images still look 'rich'.

Rusty Neon	06 Feb 2005
scans of cards from the Egorov Tarot deck: http://www.wicce.com/egorovpix.html http://www.tarotpassages.com/egorov.htm http://www.tarotpassages.com/egorov2.jpg Brand new copies of this deck are available quite inexpensively on eBay from sellers in the States and sometimes Canada. Pricewise, that's the best best for North Americans who wish to procure a copy of this deck. Mine cost $6.95 U.S. as "buy now".

Bean Feasa	07 Feb 2005
I don't have the Russian Tarot of St Petersburg, so can't comment on that one. I do have the Egorov though, and I really like it. It's very evocative and I like the colour-schemes against the black background. Just one thing though = what's with the cross on the coins in the suit of coins? It makes 'em look like the tops of crossheaded screws, and it kind of ruins the effect for me.

NightWing	10 Feb 2005
(The cross on the coins is a slavic thing; especially Old Russian. Orthodox Christianity has deep roots in eastern Europe, even after generations of communism.) I have both the Egorov and the St. Petersburg decks. While the St. P. deck is perhaps superior artistically, I find the Egorov much better for either meditational use or tarot readings. In fact, I found it eerie just how "dead on" the Egorov was, the first time I tried it. It is a very good alternative to the RWS, and could even be a first deck for someone that found the RWS style unappealing. And as someone else said, the Egorov is certainly far easier on aging eyes! Don't throw away the LWB of the Egorov; it has some interesting psychological clues/hints for reading. Both are enjoyable tarot decks. If I could only get one, it would be the Egorov. It desperately needs a book though. Enjoy!

Bean Feasa	10 Feb 2005
NightWing wrote: The cross on the coins is a slavic thing; especially Old Russian. Orthodox Christianity has deep roots in eastern Europe, even after generations of communism. Thanks, Nightwing - knowing that should help me get a bit more comfortable with the depiction. I'm not generally drawn to Christian symbols but I do love the rich and elaborate sense of decoration in Orthodox Christianity. (I've only been inside their churches in Greece and Cyprus, but I'm assuming the art would be similar enough to Eastern European and Russian Orthodox art). I have to confess I haven't read very much with the Egorov. This thread has inspired me to get the deck out again and have another little look :) Edited to add: If I remember right the LWB has some pretty hilarious English in it. I haven't got the book to hand, but when I get hold of it I'll come back with some quotes. Unless someone else can fill in sooner ...

NightWing	10 Feb 2005
The Egorov LWB could have used a better translator, no doubt about it. The English is a bit painful in places. However, overall there is enough to begin to work with, and the occasional humourous bits lighten the mood now and again, and that is not always a bad thing in Tarot! IMHO, the third essential of the "Slavic Trinity" of tarot decks is the LS Golden Tarot of the Tsar. The eastern iconic art is glorious, though the symbolic system is certainly somewhat different; from standard RWS, for example. Anyone who appreciates Russian and eastern European artforms, and can, should consider getting all three decks: Egorov, St. Petersburg, AND Golden Tarot of the Tsar!

Bean Feasa	13 Feb 2005
NightWing wrote: The Egorov LWB could have used a better translator, no doubt about it. The English is a bit painful in places. However, overall there is enough to begin to work with, and the occasional humourous bits lighten the mood now and again, and that is not always a bad thing in Tarot! Very true about the humour Nightwing, there is something quite endearing about it. And even as I smile reading some of the entries, I have to remind myself that I don't speak a jot of Russian, so the translator is already miles ahead of me. While we're on the subject, maybe you or someone else looking in could help me with the question of Major XIV which is called 'the Sun Genius' in the Egorov deck. Is this another example of quirky translating or is there a tradition elsewhere of using a title like this instead of Temperance? I'm afraid I'm pretty ignorant of historical decks, so am a bit stumped on this one.

Rusty Neon	13 Feb 2005
NightWing wrote: The Egorov LWB could have used a better translator, no doubt about it. The English is a bit painful in places. However, overall there is enough to begin to work with, and the occasional humourous bits lighten the mood now and again, and that is not always a bad thing in Tarot! Here's the original Russian-language text of the Egorov LWB: http://ru.laser.ru/tarot/tarot/egorov.html If there are some confusing parts in the English translation, I'd be pleased to help navigate. Unfortunately, the Russian version isn't any longer or more comprehensive than the English text. My random perusal of the Russian text, the English text hasn't been abridged from the Russian. NightWing wrote: IMHO, the third essential of the "Slavic Trinity" of tarot decks is the LS Golden Tarot of the Tsar. The eastern iconic art is glorious, though the symbolic system is certainly somewhat different; from standard RWS, for example. I wouldn't limit the Eastern Slavic oriented decks to those three. There are some Russian-titled decks that also have Slavic (rather than Western) motifs.

NightWing	13 Feb 2005
There certainly are many other Russian or Russian-themed tarot decks in addition to Egorov, St. Petersburg, and the LS Golden Tarot of the Tsar. My being taken with those particular three has more to do with their art being inspired by traditional Russian painting styles than anything else. None of those three were actually produced/printed within Russia, but each was created by persons with slavic roots. In recent years I've noticed a number of tarot decks produced inside Russia, but for the most part, the art of them either has nothing rooted in Russian culture to commend them, or in some cases are just unappealing (To me). There are several "fairy tale" decks that could have been made anywhere. Tarot Garden has some Russian produced decks displayed at their website. They vary quite wildly. I recently obtained a very large deck from Russia (in terms of card dimensions), wherein the Majors are covered with all sorts of information in various symbols and alphabets in a very wide border around the actual card image ( but nothing in Russian), and the Minors have quite a bit of info (but almost exclusively IN the Russian language). The card quality is very good, and even the production standards of the LWB(only in Russian) and box are high,...but the artwork I find disappointing in quality, and largely derivative(like from the Papus images), done in a pseudo-Egyptian style, with nothing really Russian about it. I don't know the proper name of the deck: it was sold to me as "Russian Tarot", the main title on the box being "TARO" in Russian. But it serves as a good example of what I plan to avoid in "Russian" Tarot decks! [if anyone knows the actual name of this deck from my (limited) description, please let me know.] It is quality art based in the slavic tradition that appeals to me. Others might find some of the decks that I'd pass on, quite attractive. What seems important is that the particular tarot deck is appealing and/or useful to the owner!

The Russian Tarot of St Pete or Egorov? thread was originally posted on 05 May 2004 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.