rygD
I am looking for a TdM deck, or something similar. I have looked at the more popular and available ones, and Noblet seems best for me regarding the imagery used. I am looking for something that has a lasting influence on culture that is plainly seen today, and also contains much of the symbolism that has become important since then. I am very open to suggestions.
Things I feel are important that I see in the Noblet images, but not in TdM II and some others I have looked at (though present in some), are:
0: It is more apparent to me what is going on with his backside, especially since his dangly parts are seen. The bell from his hat is obviouly on his hat, and there aren't any extras.
1: The dice.
6: Blindfolded cupid.
11: The lion looks calm.
12: Tongue and fingers.
13: Main figure facing left (see below).
15: The face on the belly, both lower figures seem obviously (to me) to be female.
16: The top of the head of the figure on the right has no hair, I prefer the look of the blocks lower on the tower.
17: Star shaped belly button.
18: Outward facing moon, colors on the crawfish.
19: Man and woman (not children).
20: Cross-eyed trumpeter, color of skin of middle figure/child (seems more alive than if blue or white).
I feel facial expressions and the directions people are facing are significant, although the only one that greatly stands out to me is death facing left. This is also the only card I am unsure of with the Noblet deck, as it looks more like a "fresher" corpse (I see it as more of a zombie than a skeleton, but even that is somewhat valuable to me). I also feel the lack of body parts changes the feel, as it could be a scene of reaping some crops while leaving the humans at the edge of the field to continue growing. I guess, in a sense, that could be true even with the body parts, since the heads seem to always be upright, like they are coming from the ground. Another card with a difference that I may "miss out on" is faces on the shoulders of the charioteer. Also, it looks like there are only 3 creatures on the wheel, but there is something near the bottom where there is sometimes a 4th, most likely legs from the one on the right.
You probably need a bit of info about why I am looking for a TdM deck, and what I am really looking for. I don't do readings at present. I am not opposed to it, I just haven't been bitten by that particular bug. I own several modern decks. Recently I decided to pick up a Waite-Smith deck to look for the influence it had on my other decks, and in other art (pictures, movies, even music). I have never found the Waite-Smith pictures (and colors!) appealing, and I was only interested in it as a reference. I went with the pocket version of the Smith-Waite Centennial due to the clearness of the lines, that the pictures were not cut down, and it is possibly the closest to the original pictures that we have. Once I had it in my hands my feelings toward the Waite-Smith deck changed, and I found that the pictures are very expressive. I looked at some TdM cards to compare to these since I had been mildly interested in them due to Jodorowsky (although I am skipping over his deck for now). I could see a pretty direct lineage and transmission of ideas from the older cards to the newer ones. Now I feel like I need more references, but I want to limit myself to only one more deck for now. Who knows, I might start reading if I spend enough time with them. Additionally, I like the handy size of the Noblet deck (yep, that's a pun).
Should I go with the Noblet deck? Are there other readily available and affordable decks with such rich imagery and symbolism that are important historically? Feel free to offer suggestions and criticism related to what I feel is significant. I am pretty sure I missed many other great decks since I am new to the older ones, and I may be reading too much into some things, and not enough into others.
Things I feel are important that I see in the Noblet images, but not in TdM II and some others I have looked at (though present in some), are:
0: It is more apparent to me what is going on with his backside, especially since his dangly parts are seen. The bell from his hat is obviouly on his hat, and there aren't any extras.
1: The dice.
6: Blindfolded cupid.
11: The lion looks calm.
12: Tongue and fingers.
13: Main figure facing left (see below).
15: The face on the belly, both lower figures seem obviously (to me) to be female.
16: The top of the head of the figure on the right has no hair, I prefer the look of the blocks lower on the tower.
17: Star shaped belly button.
18: Outward facing moon, colors on the crawfish.
19: Man and woman (not children).
20: Cross-eyed trumpeter, color of skin of middle figure/child (seems more alive than if blue or white).
I feel facial expressions and the directions people are facing are significant, although the only one that greatly stands out to me is death facing left. This is also the only card I am unsure of with the Noblet deck, as it looks more like a "fresher" corpse (I see it as more of a zombie than a skeleton, but even that is somewhat valuable to me). I also feel the lack of body parts changes the feel, as it could be a scene of reaping some crops while leaving the humans at the edge of the field to continue growing. I guess, in a sense, that could be true even with the body parts, since the heads seem to always be upright, like they are coming from the ground. Another card with a difference that I may "miss out on" is faces on the shoulders of the charioteer. Also, it looks like there are only 3 creatures on the wheel, but there is something near the bottom where there is sometimes a 4th, most likely legs from the one on the right.
You probably need a bit of info about why I am looking for a TdM deck, and what I am really looking for. I don't do readings at present. I am not opposed to it, I just haven't been bitten by that particular bug. I own several modern decks. Recently I decided to pick up a Waite-Smith deck to look for the influence it had on my other decks, and in other art (pictures, movies, even music). I have never found the Waite-Smith pictures (and colors!) appealing, and I was only interested in it as a reference. I went with the pocket version of the Smith-Waite Centennial due to the clearness of the lines, that the pictures were not cut down, and it is possibly the closest to the original pictures that we have. Once I had it in my hands my feelings toward the Waite-Smith deck changed, and I found that the pictures are very expressive. I looked at some TdM cards to compare to these since I had been mildly interested in them due to Jodorowsky (although I am skipping over his deck for now). I could see a pretty direct lineage and transmission of ideas from the older cards to the newer ones. Now I feel like I need more references, but I want to limit myself to only one more deck for now. Who knows, I might start reading if I spend enough time with them. Additionally, I like the handy size of the Noblet deck (yep, that's a pun).
Should I go with the Noblet deck? Are there other readily available and affordable decks with such rich imagery and symbolism that are important historically? Feel free to offer suggestions and criticism related to what I feel is significant. I am pretty sure I missed many other great decks since I am new to the older ones, and I may be reading too much into some things, and not enough into others.