Pack with Hexagram

Hi Vincent

I found them trawling through the net, looking to find out about the different varieties.
Luckily I remembered enough of the site name to find them again.

It's mysticeye.

They have pictures of loads of decks.
Here their list.
www.themysticeye.com/pics/

Here are the normal Thoth
www.themysticeye.com/pics/thoth.htm

Here are the 'weird' ones
www.themysticeye.com/pics/thothj.htm

The strange thing is that on the list 'buy it now' is next to both types, even though the weird ones look ancient.

I don't know if the links will work. I don't have anything here to put in to make them work, no HTML buttons.

So, you might have to cut and paste.

******************

Sorry, there was a mistake in the second one. It should be right now.

Lillie said:

Hi Vincent
Here are the 'weird' ones
www.themysticeye.com/pics/thothj.htm

The strange thing is that on the list 'buy it now' is next to both types, even though the weird ones look ancient.

Click to expand...

You are right... they are weird.

The colours seem to be askew, almost washed out. They are also missing the artwork on the borders, and the letter and astrological attributions. The printing is also out of proportion. Whatever it is, it is not a proper Thoth deck.

It looks like someone has cut out the pictures and added their own borders. I very much doubt that a deck like this is for sale, even if they could find a buyer for it.

There is some information on the different editions here;
http://www.learntarot.com/acdesc.htm

and the site says that the Unicursal Hexagram comes with the Large (US Games) version and the Pocket Swiss (AG Muller).

Good luck... I hope you get the deck you want.



Vincent

I don't know either of any Thoth version that doesn't have the decorated borders on the front. Even the small pocket version has the decorated borders. I too think that those cards have been altered or its yet another version.

There is a whole thread on this site about plain bordered thoth cards.

Unfortunatley for me. all the pics in the links cannot be shown on my puter.

However, it sounds the same.

It is possible that it is one of the first ever editions. Perhaps the LLewellyn 1969. Which was the first as far as I am aware.

Here is the link if any of you are interested

http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?threadid=29566

A collectors item, I assume.

Lillie said:

There is a whole thread on this site about plain bordered thoth cards.

Unfortunatley for me. all the pics in the links cannot be shown on my puter.

However, it sounds the same.

It is possible that it is one of the first ever editions. Perhaps the LLewellyn 1969. Which was the first as far as I am aware.

Here is the link if any of you are interested

http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?threadid=29566

A collectors item, I assume.

Click to expand...

Yes, that's interesting.

I looked a little further into the printing history. This is what Robert Wang has to say;

"The first (and little known) printing was done privately by Carr Collins and his Texas based Sangreal Foundation. This was a very poor printing, in one color. It was not until 1969 that an American publisher of occult books arranged for the first color edition, the actual printing being done in Hong Kong. Undoubtedly, Lady Harris, who had insisted that only the English printer of government postage stamps would be allowed to produce the deck, would have been very disappointed (if not sickened) by these editions.

It 1979 the cards were finally published in an edition conforming to the highest standards of reproduction."

Bill Heidrick of the OTO said;

"After Crowley's death, Harris continued to try to find a publisher
for the deck, working in harmony with Karl Germer of OTO and various
members of Agape OTO Lodge. Nothing came of it. After Frieda Harris
died, the paintings of the cards were in Gerald York's possession.
Grady McMurtry made arrangements to photograph the paintings in the
late 1960's and the Llewellin Hong Kong printed version of the early
1970's was the first time the Thoth Deck actually appeared in full
color print. There was an unauthorized monocrome edition put out by
Shambalah Press in Berkeley shortly before then, but no color edition."

I have also heard that there were some cards (probably not complete decks) that were printed in the 1940's and given away to various friends of Harris and Crowley. The same source told me that she too has a deck that is missing the border art, though she no longer has the box.

It seems that the either the Llewellyn or Weiser edition, or maybe both, were printed without borders, and that the colouring was fairly poor. Obviously, if it doesn't match up with the images from the Book of Thoth, then it has been edited by someone other than the artist or author. This won't matter to someone who is a collector, and the rarity will no doubt add to the monetary value of such a deck.

Vincent

Well
I have just bought an old, secondhand deck off ebay. There wasn't a picture, so I'mnot really sure whatI'm getting.
When I first bid I thought they would be like the ones I used to have, but now I'm not so sure.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they have the hex card in. But I don't know for certain.
And that they are in a condition to even be useable!

I won't know till I get them, and that will be ages.

But when I do I'll post up about them. It's the first time I've ever bought a 2nd hand deck.

But they were cheap, so I can't argu with that.

Hi Lillie,

Maybe you could ask the seller the ISBN number or what colour the box is. Or even how old the cards are.

Hope you drop lucky and its the deck you're hoping for.

Hi Emily

Your'e right. I should do that. But I have been poking about on the net for a while and to be honest I think I might have something quite odd.
And I think I'm going to wait till I get it to see what I've got.

I know you have told me this before, but could you just clarify.

You have, I believe, the large Thoth, in the green box with the 2 of Discs on the front.
It has a rainbow coloured unicursal hexagram in it.

Is it the Hexagram or the background that is rainbow coloured?

And what colour is the other part? (hexagram or background depending on previous anawer)

Sorry to hassle you, but it would be nice to know as that seems to be the most common pack at the momment, and if I do end up getting it it would be nice to know just what to expect.

It's strange, but that one, odd card was always really special to me.

Hi Lillie,

The hexagram is rainbow coloured and the background colour is black.

Thank you.

That is starting to sound nicer and nicer.

If this ebay pack don't work out I'll probably get some like yours.