Why is the THOTH deck so highly rated?

I don't know anything about the deck. wondering why its such a fanatic on this board.

Maybe a lot of people do magic and like Crowley.

Maybe a lot of people think it's deeper and more mysterious than RWS and RWS derivatives.

I've always thought it was an ugly deck, but I got one about four months ago and it's not as ugly as I'd judged it to be. It's not "stunningly beautiful", which is how I repeatedly see it described. But it does grow on you. And I'm starting to appreciate the pips over RWS style illustrated minors.

Also, it has astrological glyphs on the cards, if you use those correspondences. And the correspondences to Kabbalah are relatively clear.

I don't particularly like Crowley, though I don't cower in fear either. I'm not a Thelemite and will never be. But it's a quality deck.

I guess the beauty of the art is a matter of opinion.

The Star, for instance, is one of the most beautiful cards I have ever seen.

But I suppose it is not to everyones taste.

I like the deck very much for the two reasons already mentioned - Crowley's book on the deck is a real trip, totally fantasmagoric, flights of fancy and loopy prose. He also really thought about his symbolism and various associations, like astrology and elements.

Also the artwork is really gorgeous, so talented. The geometry is very appealing, really draws me in. The more I look at a picture, the more I see in it.

I also get psychic flashes when I use it, which is pretty rare for me.

hmmm is there anywhere i can view the star card? star is my favorite card in the tarot. thanxs. i guess i can understand why people will like it if the images have special symbology .

The Thoth is just something else. I love it because it is my most reliable deck. It gives a lifetime opportunity if you like to study a deck indepth. But then again, I read a lot about the need to study astrology and Kabalah, but the Thoth has proved me to be an easy deck to read with from the beginning.

Lillie said:

I guess the beauty of the art is a matter of opinion.

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Yep. I also think the art is brilliant. But that is just an opinion.

Lillie said:

The Star, for instance, is one of the most beautiful cards I have ever seen.

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True, here it is, decide for yourself.
Blessings

I like the Star. Another card I like in this deck is the Hierophant; it's my favorite Hierophant in any deck. Many artists do a poor job on this card simply because they dislike it. In this deck it's very well done.

I generally dislike the art, but that's a style opinion, not a quality opinion. Harris's art is actually art and not poorly executed scribbles. I think it's ugly, but it's not untalented.

Alot can be said about the Thoth Tarot but too me it's the best deck for anyone who like big bold images and alot of colour, even the dark looking card's have alot to say the Star and the Moon are my favourites.

I pulled my Thoth out to look through it to see which cards I dislike so much and there were surprisingly few. And some cards I like a lot, such as the Chariot. In fact, the Two of Disks I like enough that I'd hang it on my wall if I had a poster of it.

Cards that turned me off to the deck (and possibly the reason for my bad first impression of it): The Fool, The Magus and the Priestess. I can't deal with the pig snout on the Fool, The Magus looks like Miss America throwing candy and waving to children during a parade, and while there isn't anything particularly bad about the Priestess, she just isn't my favorite interpretation of that card. I think those three right in a row and the first cards in the deck gave me a bad impression overall.

Several cards are very nice, but there are three others that I also think are ugly, and they are also, oddly, three cards in a row: The Knight, Queen and Prince of Swords. I'd like the Queen of Swords, actually, if her shoulder wasn't dislocated.

Anyway, it's a quality deck, and like I said, it grows on you. I thought it was the ugliest deck ever created for several years and now I can only point to six cards that I don't like, and of them only four really bother me. In another year, I probably won't remember why I ever disliked it.