The Herbal Tarot

Creator(s): Michael Tierra, Candis Cantin
Date: 1988, reprint 2011
Country: USA
Publisher: US Games
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN: 978-0-88079-332-2
Type: RWS
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. III, pp. 587, 592-593






Notes:
The Herbal Tarot follows the general assignments of the Rider-Waite deck, but each card is assigned an individual medicinal herb.

Each suit is associated with a body system. Swords correspond to air and emotions, so all the herbs used in the suit of swords are herbs that affect the respiratory or nervous systems. Wands correspond to fire, energy and blood, herbs used in the suit of wands affect the heart and circulatory system. Cups are water, the herbs on cup cards affect the urinary and reproductive system, including aphrodisiacs. Pentacles represent earth, pentacle herbs affect the digestive system.

Some of the Major Arcana are renamed: The Hierophant is called the High Priest, The Wheel of Fortune is renamed the Medicine Wheel, the Hanged Man is the Suspended One and the Devil has be renamed as Pan.

Each card is labeled at the bottom. Trumps and court cards are labeled in capital letters on a grey background, pip cards are labeled in upper and lower case on a white background. All cards have a white border. The common name of the herb that is used on the card appears in script at the top of the card. When the background is dark, the script is light, when the background is a light color, the script is black.

Jugenstil Tarock

Creator(s): Ditha Moser 
Date: 1906*, 1982
Country: Austria
Publisher: Glanz, Piatnik
Number of Cards: 54
ISBN: 3-900-300-07-0
Type: non-tarot, tarock
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, p. 317










Notes:
The original edition of these cards appeared in 1906. The designs were by Ditha Moser, Albert Berger was the printer and Josef Glanz was responsible for the production of the cards. It is unclear how many copies were printed: some sources give the number as 300, others as only 100. Around 1910 Piatnik took over the company of Josef Glanz together with its remainder stocks of playing cards. In 1970 when a catalogue was made of Piatniks archives they duscovered unsold copies, which prompted the present editor to reprint the Jugendstil Tarock and issue them 1972 in limited edition.

 A second limited edition was published in 1982.
The number of copies each edition is undocumented. Mine is number 2850 of the 1982 edition. Many of the cards show Ditha Moser's childhood impressions, for instance wooden toy figures from the Erzgebirge. Combined with these are traditional tarock motifs.

The court cards of Hearts are dressed in the fashion of the age of Luis XVI, the Diamond Court cards are clad in ancient Egyptian style, the Spades court cards are wearing clothes which belong to the Edda sagas and all the Club court cards appear as crusading knights.

Le Tarot des Imagiers du Moyen Age - Tchou edition

Creator(s): Oswald Wirth
Date: 1926, 2006
Country: Switzerland, Canada
Publisher: Tchou
Number of Cards: 22
ISBN: 978-2-7107-0728-8
Type: Papus-Wirth
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, p. 286








Notes:
Oswald Wirth was a Swiss occultist and kabbalist (1860-1943). He drew his first version of the 22 major arcana cards in 1889, basing them on the Tarot of Marseilles and other decks of the time. These cards were used to illustrate Le Tarot des Bohemiens by Papus. Wirth redrew his cards shortly thereafter, but the revised deck was not published until 1926 along with a book on the cards called Le Tarot des imagiers du moyen-age in 1927.

This rendition of Oswald Wirth's majors, included with a French Canadian edition of Wirth's book Le Tarot: des Imagiers du Moyen Age was first published in 1966 and in many editions since then. Mine is a 2006 photoreprint of the edition Sand 1984

The style is similar to that of the Marseille, with some changes Wirth made based on the writings of Eliphas Levi. Each card except Death has a Hebrew letter in the lower right corner, but Wirth does not use the Golden Dawn assignments. In Wirth’s system Aleph is assigned to The Magician, vice The Fool. The letters continue to be assigned in order until card 20. Wirth then assigns Shin to The Fool and Tau to The World. Death does not have a name or Hebrew letter on the bottom, though it is numbered 13 the top. There are very few Tarot writers who use this assignment of the Hebrew letters ( Wirth's Tarot of the Magicians, Papus' Tarot of the Bohemians, Mouni Sadhu's The Tarot and Elisabeth Haich's Wisdom of the Tarot )

Grimmy's Transitional Arcana

Creator(s): Beth Seilonen
Date: 2011
Country: USA
Publisher: self-published
Number of Cards: 22
ISBN:
Type: other
Reference: Beth Seilonen





Notes:
This deck is handcrafted meaning that all aspects from printing, laminating, cutting, corner curving has been completed by the artist. The Cards come in a metal box with a 'window' to see into the container.

It is a limited edition of 20 decks.

Tarot of White Cats

Creator(s): Pietro Alligo, Severino Baraldi
Date: 2005
Country: Italy
Publisher: Lo Scarabeo
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN: 978-3898-757287
Type: RWS
Reference: Aeclectic








Notes:
The Tarot of the White Cats is very much in the tradition of the Rider-Waite Tarot - except for the blue-eyed, white cats (and one dog who is, of course, the Fool) drawn in the cards, instead of people .

The Courts follow traditional elemental treatment. There is a lot of occult symbology, disguised within 'children's illustrations' .

The companion booklet from Lo Scarabeo is in the usual five languages and contains the divinatory meanings,  majors are listed by number.

Cat-Rot Cards

Creator(s): Maria van Bruggen
Date: 2011
Country: Belgium
Publisher: self-published
Number of Cards: 22
ISBN:
Type: other
Reference: Deviant Art






Notes:
The Cat-Rot Cards is a Limited Edition of 333 decks.

Tarot of the Witches

Creator(s): Fergus Hall
Date: 1973
Country: Switzerland / USA
Publisher: AGM / US Games
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN: 978-0-913866-53-5
Type: Marseilles
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, p. 253







Notes:
This Tarot is also known as Fergus Hall Tarot, it was designed for use in the James Bond film Live and Let Die. Originally published under the title of The James Bond 007 Tarot Deck, the publisher changed the name of the deck to Tarot of the Witches several years later.

The cards were painted with oils on canvas; the numbered cards of the minor arcana are pip cards only. In the movie 'Live and Let Die' Solitaire's cards had a couple of illustrated minors that weren't published with the commercial issue - a six of swords complete with boat and a seven of wands with warrior.

Tarot of Marseilles - Ancien Tarot de Marseilles

Creator(s): Paul Marteau 
Date: 1930*, reprint 1977?
Country: France
Publisher: Grimaud
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN:
Type: Besancon / Marseilles
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, p. 138







Notes:
The line drawings of the 1930 deck by Paul Marteau are exactly the line drawings of the Besancon type Arnoult-Grimaud deck, called "Tarot Italien," published in 1891 by Grimaud.

Marteau made a few minimal corrections on some details of the line drawings and changed the Juno and Jupiter cards to Papesse and Pape. The images for pape and papesse came from the Camoin-Conver pictures. He replaced the colours with others closely resembling those of the 1880 Camoin-Conver deck and gave his creation the name "Ancien Tarot de Marseille".

Flornoy believes that Paul Marteau wrote his book and his interpretations of the cards based on the coloring of a Camoin-Conver deck. As the Tarot Italien did not match the coloring of the Camoin-Conver deck, it was necessary to change the color of the pictures in order to match the meanings of Marteau's book.

The "Ancient Tarot de Marseilles" is not a reproduction of a historical deck that once disappeared, it can be regarded as a deck in print since 1891.

There are many little variations over the period from 1930 until today from which one can derive the year of publication (Coredil listed them on Aeclectic Tarot Forum). For e.g. the 1930 edition has 3 fleurs de Lys on the 4 of cups where later editions have the tulip, it has no dice on the table of the Bateleur but two red circles .

My version corresponds to type Deck11 in coredils list:

All cards have a copyright © GRIMAUD 1963, French and English titles,
background color white, red box with L'AMOUREUX on both sides
LWB: French and English
Copyright on the LWB: J.- M. Simon 1977
it has the usual blue pattern cardback
The deck came with 2 advertising cards.

In order to get enough space on the cards for the bilingual titles, the pictures have been changed. For example La Justice doesn't stay anymore on a ground, the lion in La Force looses his leg, Le Pendu is smaller and thiner, the sword of Le Diable has been shorten, the twins in Le soleil are much nearer to the sun, Le Monde and her guirlande are smaller, but the other figure did not change .

Aquarian Tarot (US Games)

Creator(s): David Palladini
Date: 1970, reprint 2006
Country: USA
Publisher: US Games
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN: 978-0-913866-69-6
Type: RWS
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, pp. 229, 230

Notes:
The Aquarian Tarot Deck was first published by Morgan Press in 1970. It is now printed by AG Müller and distributed by US Games.

Palladini combined the symbols of the traditional Tarot with more modern, updated images in a combination of Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles.

The deck has a title card, a card with biographical information and came with a lwb.

Morgan-Greer Tarot (Spanish)

Creator(s): Bill Greer, Lloyd Morgan
Date: 1979,  1993
Country: USA
Publisher: US Games
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN: 0-88079-695-2
Type: RWS
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. III, pp. 595, 608






Notes:
Originally published by Morgan Press in 1979, the deck was later published by U.S. Games Systems. There is a separate card with the deck that states that it was illustrated by Bill Greer, under the direction of Lloyd Morgan. The symbolism used is a combination of the systems developed by Arthur Edward Waite and Paul Foster Case.

Rather than paint full scenes as did Smith, Greer chooses to paint from a closer perspective. Many of the people shown in the cards are androgynous, the Pages can represent a girl or boy equally well.

This is the Spanish Edition 1993. The titles on the cards and the LWB are Spanish only. It came with two extra cards, the above mentioned titlecard and a card with biographical information on Bill Greer. The card backs are light blue with white stars and - other than the first edition - all cards have identical backs.

BlueDogRose Tarot

Creator(s): Elsje VanderHoeven (Nakisha)Date: 2011
Country: USA
Publisher: self-published
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN:
Type: Other
Reference: Nakisha




Notes:

The suits are cats (swords), dogs (clubs), birds (cups) and rodents (pentacles). The Major arcana also has goldfish, guinea pigs and rabbits.

Instead of "The Hanged Man" there is a "Chained Dog" Card.

Epinal Tarot

Creator(s): Francois Georgin
 Date: 1875, 1979 
Country: France 
Publisher: Grimaud 
Number of Cards: 79 
ISBN:
Type: Besancon
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, p. 245









Notes:
This is a reprint of the Tarot d'Epinal originally published in France by Pellerin during the nineteenth century. These packs were inexpensively printed for popular distribution.

Epinal is a city in France, a former center of the print industry. The expression: "Une image d'Épinal" is used to describe something (picture or situation) with a typical "traditional" taste or where only "nice" and "good" things are shown.

According to Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. II, p. 212 the reprint is from the Tarot of Pellerin & Cie printed between 1875-1880, the LWB gives 1830 other sources 1855 for the first print. The artwork is by the French engraver Francois Georgin (1801-1863).

It has Juno and Jupiter instead of Pape and Papesse and an extra card called "The Consultant". Emperor and Empress are unnumbered.

This Version is edited by J.M. Simon from Grimaud and has extra english titles, which the reprint from Arts et Lettres 1976, that is printed in Encyclopedia of Tarot vol. I, does not have.

Numerological Tarot

Creator(s): Richard Bennett de Lavigerie
Date: 1986
Country: France
Publisher: Grimaud
Number of Cards: 88
ISBN:
Type: Marseilles
Reference: Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. III, pp. 609, 617





Notes:
The deck based on the numerology of Georges Muchery. If the Major Arcana number is even it is enclosed in a feminine shope, if it is odd in a masculine shape. The number on the left of the image is the kabbalistic number and the letter on the right corrsponds to the number of the card. At the bottom is a number calculated from the Tetraktys of Pythagoras.

In addition to the 78 tarot cards with images from the Tarot of Marseilles there are ten numbered "question cards".

Tarot Hindou de Madame Indira

Creator(s): Colette Silvestre-Haeberle, Madame Indira
Date: 1993
Country: France
Publisher: Grimaud
Number of Cards: 30
ISBN:
Type: non-tarot
Reference: Le Palais du Tarot








Notes:

The Tarot Hindou consist of 30 cards with no tatot-like structure. It claims to be derived from ancient knowledge epistomized by the Mahabbarata.

The LWB advises three ways to draw the cards: The "Sacred Nine", the "Six Incarnations" and the "Magical Circles". Despite being named "Tarot" it has nothing to do with tarot at all.

Tarot du Roy Nissanka

Creator(s): Maria Mestre
Date: 1999?
Country: France
Publisher: Grimaud
Number of Cards: 78
ISBN:
Type: Marseilles
Reference: Aeclectic Tarot

Maitre Cartier Grimaud

The Grimaud house is one of the oldest European playing card manufacturers. In 1848  B.P. Grimaud bought a company called Lequart & Mignot, which in turn  a few years before had taken over the atelier of Maitre Cartier Alphonse Arnoult on Rue de Bondy, Paris. Arnoult published his first deck of cards in 1748. Grimaud modernized the cards by printing reversible cards (two heads).

As the atelier on Rue de Bondy became too small, Grimaud moved to Rue de Lancry in 1865. The following year he created a partnership with Charles Chartier, who invented a way to produce cards with round metallised corners. His nephews Leo and Georges Marteau and Julien Emile Boudin were associated to the house Grimaud. Baptiste Paul Grimaud died on the 21 April 1899.

After 1909, a new generation appeared: Georges Marteau leaves. Paul Chartier takes the place of his father in 1910 and Paul Marteau takes the place of Leo Marteau in 1920.

On June the 18th of 1817, a royal edict imposed the apposition of a stamp on the ace of clubs and enforced the use of a special paper to produce playing cards. These administrative constraints made it difficult for new companies and monopolized the market up to 1945. By that time, the Playing Cards Authority is suppressed and the market is free again.

In February 1946 Jean-Marie Simon floated his own brand name "La Ducale". At the beginning he subcontracted the production of playing cards, but to meet the high demand, he invested in equipment and one year later he produced by himself.

His little factory in Lorraine had difficulties to make a name for itself because of the " giant " Baptiste-Paul Grimaud. But day after day it gained ground thanks to the quality of it's production.

Just 15 years after the establishment of his factory, Jean-Marie Simon bought up Grimaud Society, changed the Name to Jean Marie Simon - France Cartes, and became the number one of the playing cards, producing and distributing the brand names Grimaud and Ducale. The location rue de Lancry was abandoned and the factory rue David d'Angers with all the machines was destroyed. Today Grimaud is a part of Groupe Cartes France.

Decks





Books

• IL ETAIT UNE FOIS B.P. GRIMAUD MAîTRE CARTIER / A. Barbier, dir. ; G. Beuchet. - Paris : ACCART, 1998. - 32 p. : ill. en noir et en coul. ; 30 x 21 cm.
• Le Tarot de Marseille, Paul Marteau

References
[1] Encyclopedia of Tarot, vol. I, pp. 138
[2] Website of France Cartes
[3] Aeclectic Tarot
[4] Manteia online