Gilded Tarot -- Suits and Correspondences

[wildirish]

I fell in love with this deck when I first saw it, but if I had it to do over again, I wouldn't buy it. Here's why.

The color switch between swords and cups grates on my nerves. It would be like claiming that the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. Air is yellow, water is blue. I'm a Wiccan, so these correspondences are integral to my beliefs.

The court cards are a huge disappointment to me. Every queen is in the same pose, every king is in the same pose, etc. How are different cards supposed to inspire your intuition, when they're nearly identical? The Knight Of Swords is supposed to be dynamic and active, but he looks dull and stodgy on his horse. It makes it very hard to learn the meanings of these cards, when the cards either look too similar or else the images don't correspond to the meaning of the card.

The majors are gorgeous, and I love them. But the minors and court cards make me regret purchasing this deck, I'm afraid.

[PAMUYA]

Originally Posted by wildirish

I fell in love with this deck when I first saw it, but if I had it to do over again, I wouldn't buy it. Here's why.

The color switch between swords and cups grates on my nerves. It would be like claiming that the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. Air is yellow, water is blue. I'm a Wiccan, so these correspondences are integral to my beliefs.

The court cards are a huge disappointment to me. Every queen is in the same pose, every king is in the same pose, etc. How are different cards supposed to inspire your intuition, when they're nearly identical? The Knight Of Swords is supposed to be dynamic and active, but he looks dull and stodgy on his horse. It makes it very hard to learn the meanings of these cards, when the cards either look too similar or else the images don't correspond to the meaning of the card.

The majors are gorgeous, and I love them. But the minors and court cards make me regret purchasing this deck, I'm afraid.

Don't be afraid, every deck has something to teach you. Continue to read with it, learn it strengths and it's weaknesses. Most court cards are hard for people to relate to, but it comes in time. Learn to read from a deck that has issues, and you can read from any deck. I come from a background of reading from playing cards(40 years), no pictures at all. So for me the pictures are just an added insight. This deck will give you the opportunity to learn suits and numbers which is a great foundation. Besides in every deck you will find cards that you cannot relate to. Open your intuition, the cards are just a guide, the magic of reading cards are not the cards, the magic is within you.

I do have this deck and used it for a few years as my primary deck. I will still pull it out every once in awhile. I am currently using the Legacy deck, it is not perfect either because we all have our thoughts on what "should" be in a card, but the artwork is beautiful.

[PulchraElectri]

When I first got my gilded deck I associated the suits as
Swords=Air=Winter. To me the suit of swords just seemed more wintery to me because of all the blues and grays. Especially the Ace of Swords. It reminds me of a winter storm cloud in the background.
Pentacles=Earth=Spring. I thought of this suit as spring because of the scene on the Ace of Pentacles. The leaves on the trees remind of the new green color of spring, with the animals coming out of hibernation and playing in a field of new grass.
Cups=Water=Summer. I thought of this suit as summer again because of the Ace of Cups. It reminds me of a huge lake, of swimming and summer fun.
Wands=Fire=Fall. The Ace of Wands reminds me of Autumn because of its colors. I live in the mountains and every fall the view is full of bright reds, oranges, yellows, and brown leaves on the trees.
I don't know if this is "right" per say but it is how I view them and how I interpret them. I was told that most people go by the wiccan tradition to interpret seasons and their corresponding elements. I just don't feel that that is how the cards depict themselves in this deck. It's interesting to know that I am not the only one that thought the suit of swords resembled winter.