card backs

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 31 Dec 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

SunChariot	31 Dec 2004
Here is something no one ever asks.:-). just curious to see which deck you all think has the prettiest images on the backs of the cards. Of my 6 so far, it would be Madame Endora's Fortune Cards. Which is not really Tarot. Other than that, of my Tarot decks, The Lover's Path (my favoutite colour is red) :-) Bar

Ulfdis	31 Dec 2004
I like the Universal Waite's backs. Those simple gold stars on the dark blue background just seem to get better with age. I also like the back of the Tarot for Cats. My least favorite is Buckland Romani, which is jarring compared to the faces of the cards.

Michelle	31 Dec 2004
I love the Universal Waite's back also. I purchased a gold silk bag to keep them in - it goes great with the gold stars. I also like the back of the Goddess Tarot. I have noticed that if I dislike the back of the card - I am much less likely to use them. Too bad you can't always see the backs before buying the deck.

Arnnaria	31 Dec 2004
Not to sound redundant, but I do love the Universal Waite back too. I never noticed them until some querents commented on how nice they are.

SunChariot	01 Jan 2005
Ulfdis wrote: I like the Universal Waite's backs. Those simple gold stars on the dark blue background just seem to get better with age. I also like the back of the Tarot for Cats. My least favorite is Buckland Romani, which is jarring compared to the faces of the cards. I have heard people say the Haindl backs are jarring. It is an image of an eye. It doesn't bother me much though. I kind of like the idea of an eye, as the deck (and all my decks so far) lets me see things I wouldn't normally see without Tarot. Bar

SunChariot	01 Jan 2005
Michelle wrote: I love the Universal Waite's back also. I purchased a gold silk bag to keep them in - it goes great with the gold stars. I also like the back of the Goddess Tarot. I have noticed that if I dislike the back of the card - I am much less likely to use them. Too bad you can't always see the backs before buying the deck. I was thinking the same thing, that more sites should show the backs on them as well as the card images themselves. I would like to see it too before you buy a deck. We do spend a lot of time looking at the backs, when shuffling and laying things out. As it is about intuition of course it affects how you feel about the deck. Bar

Grizabella	01 Jan 2005
I love the backs on the Waking the Wild Spirit deck. I think they're the prettiest I've seen.

rosyelf	01 Jan 2005
My favourite back-design is the one Mindy Sommers used on her Dreaming in Color : Ethereal Tarot-I could look at those dreamy greens and extraordinary pinks for hours. :) :)

Magi	04 Jan 2005
I like the Winged spirit tarot backs. they're like an old high magick seal.

similia	04 Jan 2005
I love the Golden Rider backs. It's a shame I feel different about the fronts. There was a Charmed episode that showed the Golden Rider backs, with a front image designed for the show. I was so dissapointed after searching to find this great deck, that it was a pretend deck with really nice backs!

Rosanne	04 Jan 2005
The prettiest Back..mmmm Just spent an enjoyable hour unpacking my collection and looking carefully at their backs. My vote goes to Rohrig Tarot for the Nebulae Cosmic wave Design. Second goes to Symbol pack 'Psycards" Arabic geometric in wine, black and Gold. None of my favourite decks have backs that are inspiring. I was surprised to find that I had trouble recalling the backs of the cards I use the most. Will be more aware now. Regards Rosanne

SunChariot	04 Jan 2005
[quote=similia]I love the Golden Rider backs. It's a shame I feel different about the fronts. QUOTE] That's so funny! I love your sense of humour,:-) Bar

Mesara	04 Jan 2005
I really love the backs of the Halloween Tarot, with the black cats on each end.

Grizabella	04 Jan 2005
**I love the Golden Rider backs. It's a shame I feel different about the fronts.** Sounds like how guys saw me when when I was young.

Nina*	04 Jan 2005
I think the prettiest backs I've seen are the ones on the Röhrig Tarot (never use the deck, but it IS beautiful). From the decks I DO use I find the Sakki-Sakki backs to be the prettiest :D

Cielo	04 Jan 2005
Lyric wrote: **I love the Golden Rider backs. It's a shame I feel different about the fronts.** Sounds like how guys saw me when when I was young. Amen to that, Lyric! Couldn't have put it better myself!!!!!!!! :D:D:D

Webwitch	04 Jan 2005
Quote: I like the Universal Waite's backs. Those simple gold stars on the dark blue background just seem to get better with age. Have to agree with this. They are my favourite cards in terms of the designs on the back. Simple and beautiful. I, too, have to agree with others as to why the back of the cards are not shown on websites. Some of them really are very off-putting. Cheers, Webwitch :)

SunChariot	05 Jan 2005
I finally found a site that shows the backs! :-) It's at http://www.tarotadvice.com/home.asp I clicked on the Our 5 Most Popular Decks • Universal Tarot Tarot of the Old Path Secret Tarots Sacred Circle Tarot Stone Tarot section in the left and there they were. Glad someone thought to include them on their page.:-) The Voyager one is nice, and the Visconti, Tarot of the Rennaisance and the Stone Tarot. Bar

FlashFighter	10 Jan 2005
Mine would be the back of the Fradella Adventure Tarot, the backs remind me of the old Superfriends cartoon cutscenes. (It may sound bad to some, but I'm a cartoonist and I am majoring in animation)

Strange2	13 Jan 2005
FYI, here's another thread from a while "back" about deck backs: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=22158&highlight=backs

Little Baron	13 Jan 2005
I quite like dull card backs that look like those of playing cards. Both my Marseille decks have those, and also, my Ancient Italian. However, as prettiness goes, my vote goes to the Rohrig. Yabs

WhiteWolf	13 Jan 2005
One of my favorite tarot deck backs is World Spirit Tarot's. I know it's not very popular to have the back of a card let you know whether or not it's upright prior to flipping it over, but I love the moon and sun on opposite sides. Being one who doesn't read reversed (except for yes/no spreads), it doesn't bother me at all. It also has a bit of a yin-yang quality to it. WhiteWolf

SphinYote	13 Jan 2005
Has anyone else noticed the interesting quality of the Magerete Petersen backs (at least for the english version, not sure if its the same for the German)? They aren't all identical and you can put them together (They seem to have been cut with four to a sheet for the back) and the edges to some match to one another (You can't get all of the cards to match to each other, you need to play with a few cards from the deck and rotate them around for a while to get it to work, I only noticed it by accident). As for the Haindl, people have mentioned the sty on the eyelid bothers them. I once took a scan of it into photoshop and edited the sty out. When I'm at home I'll have to check and see if I can find it and post it. SphinYote

Little Baron	13 Jan 2005
I also like the Pagan 2000 backs - with the eye on. Quite eerie but I like them. Phantasmagoric Theatre Tarot backs are also nice; and the Fantastical. Yabs

Strange2	13 Jan 2005
SphinYote wrote: Has anyone else noticed the interesting quality of the Magerete Petersen backs (at least for the english version, not sure if its the same for the German)? They aren't all identical and you can put them together (They seem to have been cut with four to a sheet for the back) and the edges to some match to one another (You can't get all of the cards to match to each other, you need to play with a few cards from the deck and rotate them around for a while to get it to work, I only noticed it by accident). I concur, the Margarete Petersen deck has very mesmerizing back patterns (and beautiful artwork on the fronts!), with a subtly shifting snake pattern. I only have the German version deck, but it sounds from your description to have the same backs as the English version. Here's a scan of one of the German MP backs: http://www.tarotforum.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=1220

Fudugazi	13 Jan 2005
I like the backs on the Tarot of Prague, with their mysterious talisman palindrome. I like the Tarocchi di Vetro backs, four peacocks mingling their closed tails, and the backs of the Hadar Tarot de Marseille, all flowery vines and circles. But my favourite is the plain but beautiful Mythic deck backs: a dark midnight blue, and in gold filigree in the middle, a small composition with all four suits enlacing each other. From a foot away, they look like a lyre, or a vase.

cSpaceDiva	14 Jan 2005
I know how a lot of people feel about the fronts, so I'll have to go out on a limb when I say I like the backs of the Hanson-Roberts for the rich color and the swirly art nouveau design.

dolphingirl	14 Jan 2005
Funny thing is that I rarely look at the back of a deck when I am shuffling. With that being said my favorite backs are Halloween Hanson-Roberts Tarot Tarot of Timeless Truth

Sinner	14 Jan 2005
Has anyone seen the backs of the Dragon Tarot? They look awesome imo, theres 4 dragons facing opposite directions in each of the four corners and in the middle their tails are entwined in a symmetrical pattern it looks very mystical.

willowberry	14 Jan 2005
I must admit I'm going to be hideously chutzpah and say that the Medieval Scarpini are my favourite, ooh the gilt!!

The card backs thread was originally posted on 31 Dec 2004 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.