A non-scenic Major Arcana?

[Mabuse]

No. That's not an error. I do mean "Major" and not "Minor" Arcana. While fooling around with my card making hobby, I discovered how easy it would be to fit 21 pip symbols on a single card. I was actually trying to make a type of playing card deck using a 3x7 matrix to design suit cards and that's when the idea of non-scenic pips for the Majors occurred to me.

I'm interested in reader's feedback on such a deck. Would you actually use such a thing for readings? One advantage I see might be that the end user chooses the ranking of Strength and Justice.

 

[AJ]

I discovered how easy it would be to fit 21 pip symbols on a single card.
I'm interested in reader's feedback on such a deck. Would you actually use such a thing for readings? One advantage I see might be that the end user chooses the ranking of Strength and Justice.

If all 21 majors were on a single card how would you know what card came up for what position?

I've seen threads here where members have used 3X5 cards or memo pad sheets for a deck when they've been without one and needed one.

It wouldn't be as much fun as pictorial cards, and probably pretty usless to the novice with no symbology at all to go on.

Am I understanding correctly about the majors on one card?

 

[Mabuse]

I'm not speaking of placing all 21 trumps on one card. I'm thinking of substituting the usual pictorial content of trumps 1-21 with pip symbols as if they were a 5th suit of playing cards.
This is really a design experiment. I've discovered that the maximum number of pips which could be placed on a playing card is 21, which by coincidence is the highest trump of the Major Arcana.

 

[AJ]

Ah. Ok, that makes a lot more sense. No numeral, just pips.

Would probably be of great use to the stealth tarotist... honest. I know lots of members use regular playing cards for their tarot when around the public so they have to read without the majors.

 

[Est]

Someone on here did a deck with a potato stamp - different symbols for major and minor arcana. I loved it! You could absolutely see the card's meaning in its symbols (what they were and where they were positioned on the card). I'd be interested in following your progress if you go ahead