Um.... I just bought a secondhand deck "The Rider Tarot Deck"...

Namaste all. I know that people posting on this thread/forum will have oodles more knowledge about any RW deck than myself, so....

I just bought a secondhand deck, "The Rider Tarot Deck"... The LWB is copyrighted 1971 US Games, and its inner front page reads "The original and only authorized edition of the famous 78-card Tarot Deck"...

It has the same card back pattern as the Rider Waite 1971 but it has less washed-out colouring and doesn't have the 'handwritten' titles, but rather has a main title in English with a dofferent language in smaller print at each corner.

Can anyone please fill me in about this deck's date, origins etc? It does look 'aged' through use, but because it has a barcode sticker on its box, I think it cannot be too old... Thank you.

It could be one that US Games marketed outside the US.

Can you tell what the different language is? If not, can you type it with your keyboard and paste it here? Maybe someone will recognize it.

Is there a small copyright notice in the lower right-hand border on the front of the cards. If so, what's the date?

Does the box say anything like "Printed in..."? If so, what does it say? Is there a street address for US Games on the box or in the booklet?

My hunch is, if it doesn't have handwritten titles it's fairly new, but I'm not familiar with all the foreign-language editions so maybe not.

Thanks, Abrac

Yes... My first deck was a real 1971 deck, with handwritten titles etc... it is currently on loan (I know... I lent it out years ago, which is why I picked up this new deck)

I've looked more closely, and it does say "made in Switzerland expressly for US Games...."

I'd say the languages are French, Spanish, German, and perhaps Dutch, at a guess.... and the tiny writing on the right hand bottom corner of each card says C 1971 US Games....

Ah... more clues, and definitely a recent deck despite its worn appearance... the second spare card has a list of popular decks, many of which sound recent... Hanson-Roberts, Barbara Wwalker, Ukiyoe, Motherpeace, Native American... etc etc etc, so it definitely dates things, doesn't it...

I can't find a date for Tree of Life Tarot... Other than that, Barbara Walker's Tarot is dated 1986, so that dates it at least 1986 or more recent... hmmm...

Thank you for your patience, Abrac! All things good to you!!!

I mentioned a similar deck in this post.

Rodney

What type of box is it in?

rwcarter said:

I mentioned a similar deck in this post.Rodney

Click to expand...

Thank you, Rodney! A further look (so easy to see when I know what I'm looking for!) finds that the address was 38 East 32nd Street, New York, N.Y. 10016, which you say was roughly 1980-1990. If the cards became glossy (plasticized) around 1985, then I am confused further, as the LWB made mention of a deck that was created in 1986, so one would assume it was later than that, but it isn't glossy... unless it's so worn that all evidence of gloss has left (!!) ... It certainly doesn't feel plastic, or laminated, or glossy, though!

Sulis... it comes in a simple box like a playing card box (not sure what you call that...) with The Magician on the front... Thank you all for your enthusiasm to discover this deck's history!!

Five Language Edition

English, Dutch, French, German, and Italian

Hi linnie! Is the ISBN on the box 0-88079-304-X (978-0880793049) ?? if so the date seems to be 1996

US Games' address changed from E.32, NY to Stamford, CT sometime after 1986 but no one's been able to pin it down exactly. Until that question's resolved there will be a hole in the time line that makes it difficult to date RWS decks from the late 80s and into the 90s.

I'd go by the reference to the 1986 deck in your booklet, as it's more concrete. Not to discount things like lamination and print quality, but I'd use them as supporting evidence not primary. Lamination and print quality can vary widely even among decks printed close to the same time.

Abrac said:

US Games' address changed from E.32, NY to Stamford, CT sometime after 1986 but no one's been able to pin it down exactly. Until that question's resolved there will be a hole in the time line that makes it difficult to date RWS decks from the late 80s and into the 90s.

I'd go by the reference to the 1986 deck in your booklet, as it's more concrete. Not to discount things like lamination and print quality, but I'd use them as supporting evidence not primary. Lamination and print quality can vary widely even among decks printed close to the same time.

Click to expand...

Hi Abrac!
I have the USG 2002-2003 Catalog, and the 5 Language deck is on Page 7.
I also have a copy of this deck, and so basically the point is moot. ISBN 0-88079-304-X
(for sale cheap on eBay as we write).
Thanks!

In Kaplan's Encyclopedia, Vol.4, page 484, he describes a five-language edition in Dutch, English, French, German, and Italian but doesn't give any other information.

In Vol.3, page 629, he describes French and German editions: "The Rider Waite Tarot, drawn by by Pamela Colman Smith under the direction of Arthur Edward Waite, was published around 1984 in editions with French and German titles. AG Muller of Neuhausen, Switzerland, issued the decks under license from U.S. Games Systems." Pictures of these decks are shown and they're two different decks, not one deck with French & German titles.

It sounds like maybe the non-English editions started being published around 1984 and were distributed in Europe by AG Muller. Muller was probably responsible for the multi-language edition. At least that's my guess.

Now I wonder if this particular deck was the inspiration for another well-known European publisher famous for multi-lingual titles.