The Pictorial Key Tarot

The Pictorial Key Tarot by Davide Corsi and Giordano Berti
Lo Scarabeo
Photo © Karen Wiedrhold

I've had the Pictorial Key Tarot for a few weeks now and am enjoying my time spent with it.  It is a modernisation of the RWS Tarot, created  by Giordano Berti and Davide Corsi for Lo Scarabeo and is rich and colourful in appearance.

Most of the images have a wonderful 3D feel to them which draws you in,  however there are a small number of cards where the artwork looks flat in comparison, which is a pity.

Some of the facial expressions are a little awkward in appearance if you study them closely, but this is a minor thing.

Overall it is lovely, easy to read with and a shows a vibrant palette when laid out in a spread.  My absolute favourite image is the 8 of Cups however there are quite a lot of others that come very close.

I'd recommend this deck as a good one for beginners who may not enjoy the traditional RWS artwork.

The Pre-Raphaelite Tarot

The Pre-Rapahaelite Tarot
Lo Scarabeo
Photo by ©Karen Wiederhold

I'm delighted to add this deck to my collection.  I have a fondness for Pre-Raphaelite art and also enjoy the work of artist Giuliano Costa who also created the Mystical Tarot (another favourite of mine) so this deck is a real treat for me.

There is so much detail and symbolism in each card and I enjoy noticing the little details which aren't always what they seem at first glance or those which appear in a different way in another card.

The artwork on the backs of the cards make these my most favourite of all.  They are not reversable which may bother some but to be honest that never features in my mind as a concern, and I do read reversals.  The image is so detailed, with a large percentage of it in mirror image, that the difference doesn't immediately stand out.

It's a lovely deck and one i'll receive a great amount of pleasure from.

The Pre-Rapahaelite Tarot
Lo Scarabeo
Photo by ©Karen Wiederhold

The Pre-Rapahaelite Tarot
Lo Scarabeo
Photo by ©Karen Wiederhold

The Pre-Rapahaelite Tarot
Lo Scarabeo
Photo by ©Karen Wiederhold

The Wheel of the Year Tarot

The Wheel of the Year Tarot,

by Maria Caratti, art by Antonella Platano,

Published by Lo Scarabeo.

Copyright Lo Scarabeo

So delighted to finally have this deck. It's been on my wish list for a really long time and last week someone mentioned that there weren't that many to be found, so no wanting this to be one of those decks i'd kick myself for missing, I ordered it.

I'm really pleased with it, there is a wonderful retro feel to the artwork and the images are full of colour and beautifully descriptive.  The card stock is the usual Lo Scarabeo card stock which I do like, the finish has a matte feel to it and the cards shuffle beautifully.

The only thing that disappointed me looking through the deck is the coloured lines on either side of the image in the border.  Try as I might this is really off-putting for me.  I've tried to ignore them but sadly they are really overpoweringly obvious to me and just seem out of place.  

So there is only one thing for it and that's taking off the borders.  I don't make a habit of taking the borders off,  only having trimmed two decks in my collection.  Trimming does mean that i'll lose the bright orange border on the back which I quite like as well as the numbers and descriptions for each card.  However the images are so clearly depicted that there won't be confusion about which card is which.

I'll put up some images of the cards once i've trimmed the deck and may or may not edge the cards in either gold or bronze.