The Classic Tarot (English, French, Spanish and German Edition) [Cards]

Lo Scarabeo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2000

Amazingly detailed and gracefully beautiful, Alasia's tempera-on-papyrus paintings meld the stunning style of ancient Egyptian art with the mysteries of the Tarot. To shape the interpretations, Alasia relied on the conceptions of Jean-Baptiste Pitois, who linked the The Classical Tarots cards are a feast for the eyes, employing delicate, detailed line work and deep, rich colors. Lush and vibrant, these cards illustrate the drama, the complexity, and even the humor and weirdness of life. This deck is authentically reproduced from the original, with the modern addition of a white border with a key word in English, Italian, French, and German for each card.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Since 1987, Art Publisher Lo Scarabeo has published over 100 Tarot decks that have been acclaimed all over the world for originality and quality. Only the best Italian and International artists are selected for our new decks, and the result is that Lo Scarabeo's decks are all recognizable as an exceptional artistic value.

Tradition
One of Lo Scarabeo's goals is the preservation of traditional Tarot decks.

Development
New decks and ideas are continually gathered from all over the world. This allows Lo Scarabeo to produce some of the most innovative decks available today.

Quality
Lo Scarabeo is committed to ever increasing quality and beauty of their products.

Distribution
*Llewellyn is the exclusive distributor of Lo Scarabeo products in North America.

Product Details

• Cards: 78 pages
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications (September 8, 2000)
• Language: English, French, Spanish, German
• ISBN-10: 0738700150
• ISBN-13: 978-0738700151
• Product Dimensions: 4.8 x 2.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #755,965 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars classic tarot, July 4, 2009

By 

D S "uniform_hippie" (Fort Meade, Maryland) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Classic Tarot (English, French, Spanish and German Edition) (Cards)

an excellent deck for those interested in pre RW interpretation. The deck has key words written along the border in four differing languages, which provides ample information for word analysis. The images themselves are lovely and vibrant and the deck, I have personally noticed, is best used for reading relationships. My aunt and myself have been reading with the 'classic' for years and our customers appreciate the detailed information the deck lends. Purchasing this deck is worth the expense, especially since it is no longer in print. A must have for any serious collector or professional reader. (Update from 2011: This deck has made a surprising comeback and is being printed at a very affordable deal. Buy it before it goes out of print again!)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not as "classy" as the 'Ancient Italian Tarot', but nearly identical !, September 23, 2010

By 

Heyward B. Gardner Jr. (Osaka, Japan) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Classic Tarot (English, French, Spanish and German Edition) (Cards)

As a collector of Tarot decks with a taste for the old Italian styles I decided to add this one on a whim. Sometimes called 'The Classic Tarot' or 'Classical Tarots' A quick glance through the cards and the LWB reveals that this is a (later ?) 1835 rendition of the same design printed by Carlo DellaRocca that Lo Scarabeo also produces under the name of 'Ancient Italian Tarot' (AIT), which happens to be a personal favorite. However, there are some very notable differences:

Beginning with the obvious: The card backs are a white and ochre toned, double-headed, "zoomed-in" version of Atu XVII The Star. Not bad... but not really what I like to see with a reprint of an antique deck. No problem for readers who use reversed meanings. The face of the cards is bordered in white, heavily along the left side, with a key divinitory word in 4 languages Italian, English and (I think) French & German going up the side. The modern style of the backs and the borders seems to clash a bit with the antique images.
This is in contrast to the AIT which has a full antique face on the cards without the key words or the distractingly modern white border; and has an attractive Baroque filligree backing in white & hunter green.

The pips are decorated in the typical Italian style of the period with ribbons & swirls. Also, because these Minor Arcanum are not full scene images, here the white border with the key words along the left side (which I find somewhat tacky on the Major Arcana) may be useful for new readers. The decorations around the suit emblems differ somewhat in the 2 decks I am comparing here, but one must see images to compare-contrast Baroque embellishments. One more point on the pips: the swords are double-headed / reversible; this means that the Ace has 1 sword, the 2 has 4 swords, the 3 has 5 swords (2 at each end, one in the center) and so on through the suit. This is not so distracting as it may sound, as the pattern is attractive and traditional. Roman numerals are present and can be used to indicate upright & reverse. This goes for both the Classic Tarot & the AIT.

The art is basically the same as the AIT but with a few distinguishing characteristics. Here, Atu IIII L'IMPERATORE is clean shaven and looks like the stony profile from an old coin (contast the bearded one in AIT). Same story with the King of Wands (Bastoni) who was given a shave for this deck.
The Ace of Coins (Danari) is a lovely ladie's profile on the coin (contrast Mercury's stamp on the AIT). Overall the colors in this deck are cheerier and the linework seems more refined than the somewhat cruder AIT. The production and cardstock and finish is the same high quality we have come to expect from Lo Scarabeo.

I would recomend this deck for someone wishing to venture outside the RWS pattern of full scenes on the minors wishing to explore historical Tarot. For collectors and experienced readers I would recomend the AIT. I am glad to posess both, but, had I done my homework beforehand, I may have skipped on this one and just enjoyed the AIT which is much the same artwork done in a more classical looking manner.

9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 19th century tarot pack reproduction, July 31, 2001

By 

A. Y. Smittle (Winchester, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Classic Tarot (English, French, Spanish and German Edition) (Cards)

This tarot has beautiful pictures on the box. However, it was reproduced from a 19th century pack in Italy, not a 18th century pack like it claims on the box; thus 4 stars for misleading me! The pictures therefore, are true to the time period. Very pretty. On the left side of the cards are a one word meaning for each card. This may help you or throw you or your friends off. The word is in 4 languages up the side in red; italian, french, english and dutch, I guess. Pretty deck. Nice to have a "historical" deck.