Your Favorite Underrated Deck...

Oh, can I add another one?
(this is catching! )

The Royal Fez Moroccan. A calm, friendly RWS clone, with a very 'clean' feel to it.
The human figures are drawn much better in my opinion than those in the Waite-Smith deck. It has few colours, but uses them very effectively.
The cards are a lovely size, great quality and have that nice, smooth, 'varnish' coating.

It's rumoured to be out of print sometimes but it's not.

Info here: http://www.wicce.com/royalfez.html
and here: http://www.tarotpassages.com/fez.htm


Another deck I really love is the Stone tarot. Gorgeous oilpaint artwork, deep colours, reads like a dream. It has very interesting minors; mostly RWS meanings, but done in a 'Thoth' way, so with no people in it. Instead, the suit symbols tend to 'act out' the RWS scenes.
It's also got great court cards.

Info here: http://www.wicce.com/stonetarot.html
here: http://www.spiritone.com/~filipas/Masquerade/Reviews/stone.html
and here: http://www.tarotpassages.com/stone.htm


Moonbow*, I would love to hear more about your experiences with the Karma! You're the first person I heard of that uses it.
Would you mind telling me more about the readings you've done with it?
(maybe in a pm, or in a new thread)


Yes, this is a brilliant idea for a thread!
Thank you Chronata.

Although dangerous for my bank account......

Definitely my Hudes. It's a wonderful, very underrated deck. I also *love* my Tarot of Transformation, which I believe is also very underrated and misunderstood. I find it to be very accurate.

I think the Renaissance by Jane Lyle is pretty under-rated. The book is quite well written and I really love artwork especially that on the Majors. I find them really easy to read.

Link here
http://www.illuminationtarot.com/insights/rena.html
and here
http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/renaissance-2/

J

The Londa. Heh.

Tarot de la Rea.

lionette said:

Have you any images of it?

Click to expand...

The review by Diane Wilkes at Tarot Passages shows some good scans of the deck, and you'll notice a tendency to gush; I'm the same way. This is a breathtakingly beautiful deck.

Bob

GREAT thread Chronata!

OK....I have three that I would like to mention, all for different reasons I suppose.

1) SECRET TREASURE: This would be my latest addition, the lovely and unique Mantegna Tarot. Now, because this is only a 50-card deck, and is divided into five "classes" rather than Major/Minor Arcana, I think some would argue that this is not a "true tarot"...fair enough. BUT it is a classic deck of cards, dating back to the 15th century, and I think would be more appealing to collectors of historical decks. My guess is that a lot of people don't realize that this deck exists, or if they do, they do not realize how GORGEOUS it really is! If you look at the scans, it looks like the background is black, when in reality it is bright, shiny SILVER!!! The pastel colors of this deck complement the silver very nicely....and for only $25, it is a bargain and a half!
Take a look....remember, black=silver

http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/mantegna/

2) C'MON...GIVE IT A TRY!: The Navigators Tarot of the Mystic SEA seems to be a very misunderstood little deck of cards...which is too bad, because they really are very nice to look at (albeit somewhat "strange" in a carnivalesque kind of way) and have been surprisingly accurate to read with, at least for me. I debated and agonized for a long time about whether or not to get this deck, after hearing from several people that the NTofMS was very difficult to read with, and not a good deck for beginners. Well, I took a chance and got it...and am so glad I did! Yes, I will agree that the cards are very "busy", there is a lot to look at and the colors are neon-bright....but I love in-your-face colors, so that wasn't an issue for me. I have found that the best way to read with these cards is to just go with your first instinct, focus on one aspect of the card and try not to get distracted by the rest of it. I realize this deck may not be for everyone, but I would encourage anyone who is really drawn to the imagery to give it a try...here they are (grab your sunglasses):

http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/navigators-mystic-sea/

3) TITANIA.....WHO???

One of my favorite oracle decks , and one of the most accurate to read with, is the Titania's Fortune Cards set. These cards are a modern, computer-generated version of Madame Lenormand's cards from the early 19th century, adapted by Titania Hardie. The cards and book come in a nice little golden, hardbound bookcover, so they are easy to keep together and travel well. The cards themselves are nice...very simple, but not fancy or "fluffy"...I think it was the packaging of the set (and the price....$14.95!) that got my attention....what really "sold" me was the first reading I did with them, later that day....AMAZING!!! These cards really do speak volumes, much in the way other Lenormand decks do, from what I have heard....I only wish more people knew about these cards...so now you know!

http://learntarot.com/tidesc.htm

Thanks for giving me a chance to talk about these little gems....

Luna

Tarot de la Rea

Yes, have to say this is one I like a lot too. Is it underrated? Probably not but it's certainly a bit forgotten these days.

I am also very fond of my beautiful (though rather cheaply produced) little Czech Oracle deck. It's in a very romantic, vaguely Edwardian style, and has a lot going on in it. I've had some very good readings from it - in fact one that changed my life! So I have to say it's my absolute favourite when it comes to underrated decks.

Oh - but have to quickly say that I like the Karma too. Not great art, but I agree with Hedera that it's heartfelt - we could do with more decks like that really.

I would have to say my Wolfpack cards...Very naturalistic, down to earth and they can give a great deal of information using the suggested meanings on the cards and a lot of intuition and creativity! They have been well recieved by people who would otherwise shy away from tarot readings.

baba, if that Czech oracle deck is the same one you traded with me, I would have to agree. I like it a lot and did a couple of good readings with it here on AT.
Underrated... Shining Tribe. It gets dissed for the artwork but I find a very in-depth deck. The readings are very psychological and take me places that other decks do not.

the various versions of the Tarot de Marseille