Tarot pack reviews

Check out the details on my rating system before you read my reviews.

Galactically recommended

Renaissance Tarot, Brian Williams.
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: The loveliest pack I have ever seen.
nitpicks: It's expensive.
Comments: Mr Williams is a fine scholar and a funny, dear human being. You can hear from him regularly in tarot-l. I wrote him asking about a companion book for this deck, and he pointed out he wrote The Renaissance Tarot as a companion. I don't have it yet.

Thoth, Crowley.
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: Beautifully colored. Heavy Kabalah influence.
nitpicks:
Comments: Apparently this wasn't a published deck until the 70s...

BOTA, Paul F. Case.
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: Excellent esoteric content, no bs, inexpensively priced ($8 here).
nitpicks: Unlaminated (see below). May be boring for non-BOTA folks.
Comments: a b/w pack. You color it in the course of the self-study provided by bota (the image pictures is an example of a colored card from a BOTA publication). The lack of lamination is no dealbreaker because the pack, IMO, is meant for a meditative function rather than a divinitive one.

Rider-Waite, A.E. Waite
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: The orthodox pack of the Americas
nitpicks: Purposefully misleading at times
Comments: I think everyone should have this pack, just for completeness.

Highly recommended

Transformational Tarot, Arnell Ando
likes: Excellent and imaginative collage. Neat integration of playing card and Tarot suits in symbols in the lower-right hand corner. Perfect size! (I like them to be like normal playing cards). And got a supernifty rich-purple bag for them when I bought the set direct from the author.
nitpicks: Would like annotation on what sources the collages were referring to (a la PoMo), and an astrological cheatsheet for decoding the symbols on the Major Arcana. Uncoated cards might not hold up well under heavy handling.
Comments: A gifted creator. Even my gf went googoo over this pack, and she's getting a bit tired of my tarot ranting. This pack is the one I pull my Card For The Day from... As if all this wasn't enough, Arnell participates in the tarot-l list.

Medieval Scapini tarot, Luigi Scapini
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: Complex, erudite, very witty.
nitpicks: Sometimes appears more RennFair than purist.
Comments: I wanted this pack more than any other. Much good buzz about it on the Tarot-l list.

Recommended.

Knapp-Hall pack, Manley P. Hall
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: Small size. Esoteric content. PF Case refers to this in his Oracle of the Tarot.
nitpicks: Comic-bookish colors and design. Odd mandala designs.

PoMo, Brian Williams
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: Excellent art, witty and reflective. the "smartest" deck I've seen.
nitpicks: Too freakin' big for my hands! Argggh!!
Comments: Got it new and 1/2 price at Half Price Books, a used bookstore. Still shrinkwrapped.

Tarot Rhenan
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: So-ugly-it's-pretty type of thing.
nitpicks: Slightly elongated
Comments: Marseilles-style pack. The magician on the tarot homepage is from this pack.

No recommendation one way or another.

Shining Woman tarot, Rachel Pollack
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: One of my favorite authors. Heartfelt illustrations.
nitpicks: Funky suits. No overarching schema that I can follow.
Comments: My gf really like the art and the sybology. Perhaps I would recommend it if I identified with it more. Got this for my gf at Half Price books, new and shrinkwrapped ($10!). what a find!

Aquarian, David Palladini
See info on this pack at Amazon.com
likes: Stylized Deco illustrations
nitpicks: Lack of esoteric content
Comments: Bought it for the look, then got more interested in the occult side of Tarot.

Recommend against it.

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