Looking for a 'serious' deck...

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 31 May 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Hedera	31 May 2003
My two favourite decks at the moment are the Swedish Witch and the Merryday; they are both quite cheerful, with lots of little animals and various fairy-ish creatures. The Swedish Witch I don't think I'll use in readings for other people yet, because it just feels like my 'personal' deck at the moment. I've done some readings here with the Merryday, and that worked well. I can see myself using this deck in 'live' readings, too, but I think it may not be for everyone; some people might not take all the dragons and pixies seriously. ;) That's why I'm looking for a kind of 'supplement' deck, to use when reading for other people. Something with a traditional, serious feel to it. Something that *looks* like a 'real' tarot deck, something not to be taken lightly! Perhaps even in black and white? I would like the minors to have scenes on them, preferably RWS-based, or at least not too divergent from that (I want to feel confident I can make sense of all the cards). Also, the deck would ideally have a manegable size, so that I don't have too much trouble shuffling it. I was thinking of the Light & Shadow deck, but I heard that's really big, so that put me off. No majors-only decks need apply! Any suggestions? Much appreciated! :)

ArwenNightstar	31 May 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Hedera That's why I'm looking for a kind of 'supplement' deck, to use when reading for other people. Something with a traditional, serious feel to it. Something that *looks* like a 'real' tarot deck, something not to be taken lightly! Perhaps even in black and white? Have you looked at the Tarot of the Old Path? The Herbal Deck is almost identical to the RWS deck other than the addition of the herbs. But having a knowledge of herbs really helps when using this deck.

Minderwiz	31 May 2003
It much depends whether the deck is to impress the querent or whether the deck is there to give a more serious dimension to your reading. If the former then I would tend to suggest RWS or a clone. I know that this might seem a rather lame suggestion but actually to many non-Tarot folk it has all the properties that they look for in a Tarot deck used by a reader. A deck that doesn't appear like a 'proper' tarot deck may actually switch them off the reading. That being said the deck you choose must be one that you are completely comfortable with. If you don't like RWS then don't use it just for the reason I've given. Indeed if your current deck gives you good readings then think carefully before moving to a different one.

raeanne	31 May 2003
Hi Hedera, I would suggest that you take a look at the sample cards post here at Aeclectic (and some of the other web sites as well, I guess). See what type of pictures seem to interest you the most. Maybe post the top 5-10 decks you are attracted to and people here can tell you if they follow the RWS tradition or not. You can narrow the field quite a bit just by looking at samples.

fairyhedgehog	31 May 2003
Decks that look like 'serious tarot' to me are the Russian Tarot of St Petersburg and the Aquarian. If I was a querent I think I would find either of those sufficiently Tarotish. A deck that is genuinely deep and gives serious readings: my current favourite is the Ancestral Path. I have no idea how that would look to a querent who is unfamiliar with tarot, but a friend of mine who has had a reading or two but isn't into tarot in a big way liked it.

Macavity	31 May 2003
Around the time I was thinking "serious deck", I bought the Haindl Tarot, tho' that is a pip deck. BUT I was also considering the Hudes Tarot - A thought, maybe? ;) Macavity

Two of Wands	31 May 2003
_______________________ Something with a traditional, serious feel to it. ________________________ Arwennightstar has suggested Tarot of the Old Path, so I'm going to second that. This has a traditional feel to it, has scenes on the minors (RW compliant on the whole), certainly looks like a tarot deck, includes joy, sadness, darkness and compassion, and depicts 'oldly worldly' images in a fresh and gently colourful style.

wavebreaker	31 May 2003
Hedera, have you checked the tarot.com website? It shows a lot of complete decks, so you might get some ideas there. ;)

Hedera	31 May 2003
Thank you for all your suggestions! I think the Royal Fez Moroccan is going to be the one; I thought it was out of print, but Tarotgarden has it for $15. :) I've also been looking at the Stone tarot, which looks like an interesting mix between RWS and Thoth. The rich colours really appeal to me. Fairyhedgehog: Quote: Decks that look like 'serious tarot' to me are the Russian Tarot of St Petersburg and the Aquarian. If I was a querent I think I would find either of those sufficiently Tarotish. The Aquarian I have; never really liked it much. Sort of bland. The Russion tarot of St Petersburg looks like the opposite end of the spectrum; it's so dark I can't really tell anything about the art from the online pictures. Also, I can't find any minors anywhere, do you know of a site that shows those? The deck does look interesting - I just wish I could see it somewhere irl. Minderwitz: Quote: It much depends whether the deck is to impress the querent or whether the deck is there to give a more serious dimension to your reading. Well, since I tend to get the deepest and most challenging readings from the 'fluffiest' decks (Fey, Hanson-Roberts, Merryday), yes, it would be to impress the querent, more or less. I meet a lot of people who are rather sceptical towards the tarot, anyway, and if I were to read to them using a deck filled with fairies, pixies, unicorns, dragons, gnomes, etc (like the Merryday), I think they would have a hard time allowing themselves to take the whole thing seriously. RWS was sort of my default-option, but I think the Royal Fez Moroccan just has a slightly different flavour. I also like the look of the Etruscan, but all that orange puts me off. I really dislike orange, in spite of (or perhaps because of) it being our national colour. :D

fairyhedgehog	01 Jun 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Hedera The Russion tarot of St Petersburg looks like the opposite end of the spectrum; it's so dark I can't really tell anything about the art from the online pictures. Also, I can't find any minors anywhere, do you know of a site that shows those? For information about the deck try: http://www.astroamerica.com/t-russan.html and: http://www.learntarot.com/rsdesc.htm The whole deck is available to view at http://www.tarot.com/about-tarot/decks/browsedecks.php?newdeck=25

Hedera	01 Jun 2003
Well gee, Fairyhedgehog, here I was thinking I'd made up my mind, and now you make me want that one, too! :( :D It looks gorgeous! And it has all of the bits in the right places, so to speak... (runs off to check state of credit card and availability of deck....)

Sulis	01 Jun 2003
Hedera, I would definately reccomend the Stone Tarot, it is a mix of RWS and Thoth. The minors are wonderful, moody; they convey the meaning of the cards perfectly. The majors aren`t as good IMO. I find this deck very intuitive, I`ve never used it to read for anyone else but I think that maybe some people may be put off by the sometimes garish colours. The Light and Shadow is a wonderful deck but the cards are very, very large. I don`t use mine for readings because of this. I would also say that this deck is more Thoth based than RWS but with fully illustrated minors. Love and light Crystalmynx xx

Hedera	01 Jun 2003
Thank you Crystalmynx! Well, I decided last night to do the true taroholic-thing, so I ordered both the Stone and the Royal Fez Moroccan.... I think the latter will be used for what I had in mind, to balance my Merryday, so I have one playful and one 'serious' deck to read for others with. The Stone I just found really interesting because, like you said, it seems to be a mix of RWS and Thoth. Perhaps expressing RWS meanings in a Thothy way. The scans I've seen look very beautiful; yes, the colours are very intense, but I like that. I am trying to give a kind of Thothy slant to my collection, because the Thoth-inspired decks tend to be pretty interesting. The Light and Shadow I am sure I will get at some point, not so much to read with (although I do use the Margarete Peterson, which is I think about the same size) but because I think the artwork is exeptional. But I'm afraid my Tarot-budget is gone for this month.... :(

Cerulean	01 Jun 2003
I heard Lee Burston also liked the Royal Fez Moroccon and a teacher of an intro class showed us this deck, plus some of his 'coloring' of it. He really made the deck his own. Can you tell me what you think of it? The Stone Tarot is beautiful in a different way, reminded me larger, more moodier images than the modern Navigators of the Mystic Sea (that's very modern, Golden Dawn like) or the tiny minatures of the Russian of St. Petersburg (more like Rider Waite Smith). Did the colors of the Stone Tarot appeal to your eyes? Anyone who owns it, does the cards have a shiny or flat finish and what is the card size? Thanks. Mari H.

Hedera	01 Jun 2003
Hi Mari, I think Crystalminx might be able to answer your questions on the Stone tarot. And yes, I remember both Lee and someone else (I think it was Mojo) used the Royal Fez Moroccan. Ofcourse, once I have the decks in my hands, I will be more than willing to discuss them! :) Are there any postal gods, I wonder? Someone you can pray to to make your parcels arrive faster? :D

Sulis	02 Jun 2003
The Stone Tarot This is one of my favorite decks, I`ve found it to be quite brutally honest. The deck comes in a sturdy cardboard box with a clear thin plastic lid - the lid falls to bits really quickly. The cards measure 5" x 3.25", the card stock is good but a little thin (probably because it`s a self published deck). The cards are shiny but not overly so. The backs of the cards are blue with a really nice stars and planets design in purple. The cards are very unusually coloured and this IMO is generally pleasing to the eyes, a few cards are a little garish - Judgment is red, green and blue for example and to say it looks a little strange is a bit of an understatement. The court cards have been changed slightly; the Knights in the 2 `female` suits, cups and pentacles are represented as women and have been renamed Amazons, apparantly this is to even out the genders in the courts, it doesn`t make any difference to me in readings. The other courts are King, Queen, Knight and Page. Some of the cards are just gorgeous, many of the cups resemble the paintings of Claude Monet. My favorite card is the 4 wands; the sun is rising over 4 wands, the wands to me resemble a stone circle. The ace of Pentacles (another fave) is a dandelion in seed with a pentacle as the central part. I`ve said before that IMO the minors are better than the majors which IMO would benefit from a bit more detail. It`s definately a bit of a cross between RWS and Thoth, when I first got this deck there were a few cards I didn`t get but since studying the Thoth deck a little these cards are a lot clearer. Hope that`s helped, sorry if I`ve rambled on. I haven`t used this deck for a month or so, I think you`ve just rekindled my interest in it. Thanks. Love and light Crystalmynx xx

The Looking for a 'serious' deck... thread was originally posted on 31 May 2003 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.