deck i.d - mum's vintage marseilles?

[hollyelizabeth]

My mother has a marseilles deck that she received when she was 19 (she's over 50 now). When she was given it, it was vintage. I know it's a marseilles deck, but that's about it. I'd love to know the approximate year or who it was published by? I have no information whatsoever on that.

I took a picture of the death card next to a stack of other cards with their backs.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lyadav58JC1qflseuo1_500.png

If you need more pictures/info let me know!

I'd absolutely love to know how old it is!

 

[Myrrha]

That looks like a version of the Oswald Wirth Tarot. The faces are cleaner-looking and blander than the 1926 version that you can see on Sumada's site. The same drawings as your deck were used for the US Games edition which was published in the early 80's I think? But I don't know where US Games got those drawings, likely there were earlier editions that used them and the US Games one had stronger more primary colors than yours.

Strictly speaking I don't think the Oswald Wirth is considered to be a Tarot de Marseilles as that refers to a specific pattern and Wirth (a Swiss graphic designer and occultist) made many changes. It is an absolutely gorgeous historical deck though and yours is a real treasure.

 

[Maskelyne]

The image and card back are the same as the 1976 US Games Oswald Wirth Tarot. The LWF (little white flyer) that comes with the deck says "For the first time the complete 78-card Osawald Wirth tarot deck is available to collectors". It also says "[t]he designs are under exclusive license from Tchou Editeur of Paris", which may not rule out European editions. The cards were printed in Belgium by AGMuller. That's a beautiful old deck you have there.

 

[Sulis]

Some more images from this deck, also showing the backs of the cards which are the same as in your picture: http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/oswald-wirth/

Wow, it looks gorgeous .

 

[Zephyros]

Is it the Oswald Wirth the metallic backgrounds?

If it is, this was my first deck, and it almost made me drop Tarot forever.

Not that the deck is at fault; I just didn't know what to get, and I got the first thing I saw. I ended up giving it away. Now, almost twenty years later, I actually regret that and am thinking of getting a new one, now that I understand it better. It really is gorgeous, but as a pips deck, it was the right thing at the wrong time.