Which deck has every little line and squiggle PCS originally drew?

[Winterchild]

The commemorative set is fabulous Carla.... well worth it..especially if you don't have a copy of A Pictorial Key.... I am fascinated with this book!!! I like translating...

I think I prefer my early 80's USG deck colour and CS wise but the PCS is still fabulous.

[Debra]

Originally Posted by roppo

I don't think PCS Commemorative deck is artificially stained. Rather it's a faithful reproduction of the 1909 Roses & Lilies pack (without Roses & Lilies back!) The very first RWS was the R&L packs of 1909, but they were practically cancelled decks due to the inadequate quality of cardstock and dull coloring. William Rider printed the second series in April 1910, and proposed a replacement of a pack to the customers who had purchased R&L ones. This is the reason the R&L packs are so rare now.

Ah ha. Well, news to me. Thanks, Roppo.

[bogiesan]

Originally Posted by roppo

My theory of Pam-A production is that Pixie's linework was photographically duplicated and transferred to a metal plate to print a base sheet. Then the sheet was lithographically colored by Spraig & Co. I believe the existence of photo-process in the early stage was well proven by the RWS drawings found in The Occult Review 1909 Dec.issue.
You can safely assert the linework of Pam-B & C was done by a copyist or two copyists. Just look at some PCS monograms on Pam-B&C; they are too deformed to pass for her monogram!
As to the question of "which version relfects PCS's lines best". I recommend PCS Commemorative, or early USG (1971) or Blue Box Rider.

Interesting speculation. One can spend many contempaltive hours reading the historical articles from the likes of Mary Greer and, umm, sorry, can't recall his name at the moment, but Greer references his scholarly treatises on the likely order of printing and distribution of the A,B and C runs. However they may have been created, whether by the hands of copyists or photographically, the original plates seem to have been used to print unauthorized decks.

Many people have looked into the events surrounding the creation and production and marketing of this seminal deck yet huge gaps remain in the narrative. Consider a project your company might be working on now, say, a regional cookbook, that, twenty years from now, turns out to be a classic of historical import. What would remain of the resources and narrative behind the creation and publication of the book? Probably not much. No one keeps that stuff.

[Carla]

Thanks for all your help! My current collection of Universal Waite, Original Rider Waite, Radiant Rider, Diamond Tarot (ha ha!) feels quite lacking. I am going to get the PCS Commemorative soon. For now, I await the big glossy US Games Rider Waite Tarot.

[kalliope]

LRichard, you're lucky to have that pre-1985 deck! The colors on it are great, and don't seem significantly different from the PCS Commemorative, judging from your scan.

Carla, for anyone buying a new RWS as you said you've done, they would see a much more dramatic difference. I never enjoyed the coloring of the regular US Games RWS, but I adore the PCS Commemorative.

The only standard RWS that I currently have is the pocket, but I've still attached a couple of scans to show how different the coloring is.

I used to have one of the "Original" box sets, but I thought it was very beige and greenish compared to the PCS. From what I understand, though, I didn't have the good printing with the ouroboros box.

Edited to add: Note that my PCS deck is trimmed!

[Debra]

Maybe I should add that Roppo sent part of his extensive collection of Pamela Colman Smith materials to Stuart Kaplan for use in the US Games Commemorative set!

[LRichard]

Originally Posted by kalliope

......The only standard RWS that I currently have is the pocket, but I've still attached a couple of scans to show how different the coloring is.......

Fortunately or unfortunately, my pocket RWS (China) is much nicer than my stardard deck (Italy), which appears to be the product of very sloppy printing. However, I have a late 1990s Belgian-French edition which exhibits some of the same sloppiness, so perhaps it is merely the result of copying a poor "original."

[Le Fanu]

Originally Posted by LRichard

Top row: Pre-1985, Printed in Switzerland (My 2nd favorite RWS.)

Is this a yellow box/plaid-backed one? I bought a yellow box Magician cover plaid-backed RWS, printed in Switzerland and it does have quite nice colouring though I haven't looked at it for a while...

[LRichard]

Originally Posted by Le Fanu

Is this a yellow box/plaid-backed one? I bought a yellow box Magician cover plaid-backed RWS, printed in Switzerland and it does have quite nice colouring though I haven't looked at it for a while...

Yes, indeed. That's the one.

ETA. It had the usual USG copyright, but a few hours of painstaking work took care of that. It has a matte finish and appears to be unlaminated.