Customer Reviews

Connolly Tarot Deck

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've been reading Tarot for over 30 years and since the early 90's I have insisted that all of my students use this deck. The illustrations are richly detailed without being "noisy". The colors give strong vibrational input and the images are not so overly "styled" as to be useless. I know some Pagans will hesitate because of some of the Christian images, but within the context of a primarily Judeo-Christian culture, I find them useful and descriptive of most of the "seeking" public. The fact that the "Devil" is now "Materialism", and "Death" is "Transformation", makes them particularly useful in reading for the public. I've seen clients nearly faint at the sight of either card and it can be nearly impossible to convince some of them that they aren't doomed or cursed. Overall, I find this the most useable deck for teaching and reading.

I read Tarot professionally and have studied it for 32 years. I also collect decks and have over 200 different ones...so far. While I do not use this deck, it is one that stands out in my mind and I like it quite a lot. The bright sunset colors the artist used and the subtle black outlines of the pictures lend a stained glass look to the cards. There is a lot of turquoise, purple, magenta, and bright pink in these cards that one doesn't often see in the more common or popular decks. I go back and forth in my mind trying to decide if it is cloying or a fantasy touch of innovation. Some of the characters have a Botticelli look to them. Most of the men have long hair and a medieval look, but inexplicably the Emperor seems to have just come from the barber. There are far too many cherubs on these cards to suit my taste and they don't seem to have much rhyme or reason to them, just popping in there where you don't expect them, like leaning over the scaffold on the Hanged Man card, sticking up out of the goblet on the Ace of Cups, or four of the chubby little rascals flying around the solar disk on The Sun card, but I'm sure others will enjoy them. The illustrations are for the most part quite striking and always positive. The pips are all illustrated as well as the major arcana. There is a Judeo-Christian thread of symbolism but it is not overwhelming. The more traditional Death and Devil cards have been changed into Transition and Materialism, respectively. The Fool, dressed in magenta and pink stands at a purple crossroad with a tuquoise sea and white chalk cliffs in the distance with a Spuds MacKenzie look-alike at his feet, the symbol being changed it seems from the more traditional carefree naivte to cautious contemplation of the road not taken, but still the artwork is GOOD and all of the cards are engaging. I really love the suit of Wands which features oak staves complete with green oak leaves and sometimes acorns. The artist and the designer have given refreshingly new viewpoints while also maintaining imagery that will be familiar to those experienced with Tarot. The very fact of the different imagery encourages study and meditation. All in all this is a most worthy deck.

My husband studied with Ms. Connolly and introduced me to this deck, which I now use professionally and personally. The images are lovely and I find the symbolism clear and accessible to my clients.

Clients especially appreciate Ms. Connolly's view of a couple of problematic cards:the "Devil" represents "Materialism", and "Death" is "Transformation", a much more logical, and less scary, way of interpreting the Major Arcana. The entire aspect of this deck is informed by love and the ever-present opportunity towards bettering our circumstances through knowledge and understanding.

For anyone who learned on the popular Rider-Waite deck, the transition is pretty seamless. The symbolism is especially accessible to those venturing into the Tarot from a Christian background. The cherubs and Jesus-like figure in Materialism might make one think this Tarot was carried too far from its roots, but that would be misleading. This Tarot has abundant evidence of the designer's Kabbalah knowledge, which after all was the earth in which Christianity is rooted.

I also can't recommend Ms. Connolly's Tarot books highly enough. She is a clear, accessible writer with an encyclopedic knowledge of her subject.

My favorite deck!

I love this deck! It was the first one I ever purchased...the beauty of it's colors and illustrations make it irresistable (it's a little like stained glass). She does change the "Death" card to "Transition" and the "Devil" card to "Materialism"--changes that I personally find appropriate, and I would recommend the deck to someone who gives tarot readings frequently (so many find the original card references a little scary). The Connollys have a definite Christan slant to this tarot approach, which you can see from Eileen's writing and some card illustrations that include cherubs; but the deck is worth buying for any lover of beautiful tarot, whatever your religious orientation.

This deck leapt out at me from the shelf at my local bookstore and screamed "take me home!" The deck is a good size (it is also available in a miniature version) and has an ivory marble look to the backs. The intense colors add layers of depth and meaning to the pictures--I have never seen a deck with this kind of coloring before, and that is a lot of what drew this deck to me. The colors are especially vibrant when I use the deck for readings or meditations. While Connolly does stick to the "traditional" tarot for the most part (e.g. suits cups, pentacles, wands, swords), she changes two cards in the major arcana: Death is "Transition" and The Devil is "Materialism." Personally, I wish she had left these cards alone. Also I dislike her rendition of the ten of swords, which is a woman with ten sword hilts around her (the blade portion of the sword would be out of the picture). Finally, you should be warned that Connolly works a lot of angel symbolism into her deck and her books. This may bother some people, though it has never hindered me. Overall, I like the feel and look of this deck.

Totally different from the original Rider-Waite. The color picutre has bring you to the more spirtual. Enjoy! I would recommand to use the Connolly Tarot Deck to bring your journey.

I LOVE THIS DECK. THE ART AND COLORS OF THE DECK LOOK LIKE BEAUTIFUL STAINED GLASS WINDOWS!! THE DECK IS GREAT TO USE AND GET LOST IN THE SYMBOLISM. I LIKE TO MEDITATE ON THESE BEAUTIFUL SYMBOLS, THEY SEEM TO ABLE TO GUIDE ME TO WONDERFUL INSPIRATIONS. THE DECK IS INCREDIBLE, IF LIKE ME YOU WANT THE WISDOM OF THE DECK, WITHOUT BEING SCARED TO DEATH BY THE SYMBOLS.

These cards have most of the traditional symbolism for easy reading for those that have experience with the tarot. I find these cards to be ideal because they are large yet small enough to feel very comfortable in my hands as I shuffle them. Also they are made with quality card stock, not too flimsy and not too stiff as to make shuffling difficult. I've found that to be a problem with other decks but not this one. Also, the art work on these cards is the main reason I chose to buy it. The colors are so bright and vivid but not overwhelming. Looking at these cards reminds me of looking at stained glass windows with the sunlight illuminating them from behind... they really are very lovely! The author's son was the artist on this deck and I read that he had no formal art training.. you wouldn't know it, because these cards are beautiful! This is my favorite deck of tarot cards, and I have many decks.
I highly recommend this deck for experienced tarot readers as well as beginners just learning.
Sharon

I am a professional reader and would like to reccommend the Connolly Deck to anyone who will be doing readings for laymen. This deck contains only positive images with bright and uplifting colors. The devil card and death card have been renamed transition and materialism respectively. I have found it easier using these cards than explaining the true message behind other decks that are ornate but also dark. Highly reccommended, while a tad plain, these cards are used by 5 out of the 11 people I work with.

I read many times daily with Eileen Connolly's Tarot Deck! They are always accurate and tremendously helpful. There are many angels scattered throughout the cards and I believe they 'stack the deck' when I do readings!! I feel totally connected to my clients and highly intuitive because of these beautiful Tarot Cards. The clients are amazed at the accuracy evidenced through their readings. I highly recommend this angelic Tarot to readers of the Tarot for strong intuitive divination. Lori Healy-Reed http://www.angelconnectionsbylori.com