Customer Reviews

Crystal Tarot (Tarot Card Deck)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a beautiful art deck. I've read that people buy the deck for the gorgeous colors in the minors and majors. Some close scrutiny reveals astrological symbols in the cards, such as the courts cards and some interesting sun and moon symbols in very different minors. Swords is definitely used for the 'water' element, which is faithful to a lesser-known system of cartomancy, from Eudes Picard (more on this below).

The "Crystal" title seems to be a translation of describing a lovely appearance similar to leaded crystal stained glass. Elisabetta Trevisan is said to have used tempera paints on glass to create the images.

From information discussed on Aeclectic.net, fans of this deck discovered similarities to the minors of the El Gran Esoterico (all images available for this Spanish tarot on www.tarot.com), a deck from the "Spanish School" of Continental Tarots.

The minor descriptions from Eudes Picard are available in a used book. I recommend a cheap reprint of the Encyclopedia of Occult Sciences with introduction by M.C. Poinsot, published by Robert M. McBride and Company, New York, (copyright 1939 in hardback; check used amazon.com and abebooks.com for paperback). The tarot system comes from Eudes Picard seems to be from around 1900 and of the same period that literature was available form Oswald Wirth, Levi and Etteilla. While much of the book has silly and outdated information, the tarot synopsis might be of interest to those interested in the odd background of tarot writing.

The keywords and brief explanation of the Lo Scarabeo booklet are similar, but not in enough detail for some of us fans.

Lo Scarabeo is publishing a stronger, more closer Gustave Klimnt art deck in 2005--if they ever decide to rewrite the LWB for the Crystals Tarot, I hope they will include the Eudes Picard minor descriptions with more detail. This is a gorgeous deck and the understanding of a different type of minor system adds historical interest and fun to my enjoyment of this deck.

I choose this deck for the artwork and the colors. Major arcana cards are depicted well with good designs and symbols. The minor arcana cards however, are just basic. They only have art showing the suits and the numbers. No illos to go with them unlike some decks. Still a great deck

Loosely based on the art of Viennese painter Gustav Klimt, this 78-card deck boasts intricate detailing in the Major Arcana with lovely geometric patterning and flowing lines among the non-illustrated Minors. The diverse, expressive Court Cards follow the Knave, Knight, Queen and King arrangement, and Justice is Trump 8 while Strength is Trump 11.

There is so much depth to the Majors--I feel I could step right into the card and enter this unusual world created by Ms. Trevisan. One of my favorite cards is Justice, where a stunning robe of electric magenta cascades over the Lady holding the sword and the scales. And the Strength card? The patient, persevering woman--both hands on the head of a feisty lion-- looks at us as if to say "I'm tying to hold this together--but how much longer?!"

Imbued with personality, the Court cards are exceptional. The King of Pentacles sits among craggy rocks, almost at one with the cavernous landscape. I especially love the Knave of Swords, who rests his hands on the hilt of his weapon, looking downward at the chessboard upon which he stands.

I bought the Crystal Tarot based on an online review that showed only four Majors and two Aces. While the Majors are stunning, my heart fell when I saw the Minor Arcana. While a few of the Minors are quite clever--the 3 of Pentacles portrays glyphs of the three Earth signs (Virgo, Taurus and Capricorn) embossed on the coins--most of the numbered cards are unremarkable. In fact, the 7, 9 and 10 of Cups are *identical* except for the additional cups--which seems unfortunately lazy to me.

Some elemental motifs pop up unexpectedly, without seeming rhyme or reason, such as water/Moon symbols among the Swords Courts and butterflies among the Chalices Courts.

As you may know, most LWB are practically useless, but this one is especially confusing. For example, the Majors aren't named beside the brief interpretation, but rather a keyword (e.g. Will for Magician, Stability for Emperor, Prudence for The Hermit and Energy for The Wheel), and some of the phrasing--enigmatic. For example, the introduction to the Swords states: "Faced with Swords, we are in the cold world of the mind and intellect where everything is connected to something else until magnificent but sad geometries are formed."

Huh?

Suffice to say, the Crystal Tarot is not a good deck for beginners!

If you like the Art Nouveau style, you may want to add the Crystal Tarot to your collection as an art deck. It's regrettable that the Minors aren't fully illustrated, but if you like Marseilles-like decks, you may not mind this at all.

(To see 10 card images from the Crystal Tarot, visit the Reviews--Decks section at JanetBoyer.com)

Janet Boyer, author of The Back in Time Tarot Book: Picture the Past, Experience the Cards, Understand the Present (coming Fall 2008 from Hampton Roads Publishing)

This product has a fine quality of impression and an astonishing art work. Really liked it, as I'm fond on work resembling Klimt!

...I was disappointed that the Minor Arcana cards showed suit pips only (eight coins only, or four swords only, for example) and no illustrative pictures which express meanings/moods of cards. The decks I use and relate best to (mostly Universal Waite and Morgan-Greer) have pictures (which include the pips in an entire illustration) for the Minor as well as the Major Arcana. Had I known that the Minor Arcana cards did not have complete pictures, I probably would not have ordered the deck. Again, though, speaking as an illustrator myself, the artwork itself is beautiful throughout the deck.

I bought this deck as a gift for myself at Christmas, I only had the RWD before, and while that seemed sufficient, I did not have any great connection with the deck, as I found the majority of those images rather crude and in many cases uncomfortable. After doing alot of research, reading the reviews and even going to the website for the publishing house... (which shows all of the court cards) [...]

I decided upon this deck, I fell inlove with the images right off the bat, the Major Arcana are a beautiful variation of the RWD, and the Court Cards are extremly stunning. What they say of the Minor cards is true, they are dissapointing in comparison to the other cards, in that they do not tell a story, but are still quite attractive and still make the deck and excellent investment.

Tiny items of note are that:Wands are Fire and Coins are Earth, but Cups are Air and Swords are Water, also Justice is VIII and Strength is XI, none of which are a huge break from some of the other more modern tarot decks or which detract from the decks accuracy in anyway whatsoever.

Beyond the obvious beauty of this deck, what suprised me and deserves the most attention, was how pore raisingly accurate my readings are with this deck, and the fact that not until I got this deck, did I realise how disconnected I was from my original deck. To the point where I have just ordered a new deck for reading for others (the pearls of wisdom tarot deck), as I do not want anyone else touching this deck.

In short, even if you decide not to purchase this deck, make sure to get one that you feel some sort of "connection to" or you will never realise your full potential with your readings.

The design of the cards is sublime, it offers a very artistic and symbolic interpretation of the archetypes they represent. It would be better though if the pimps had more individual designs, but the Major Arcana and the Court Cards are definitely masterpieces.

As for the quality of the cards, it seems durable being made out of plastic which is not heavy nor too light, and could withstand many years of use. All in all this deck makes Tarot reading a delightful experience.

Stunning artwork, beautiful to work with. Only caveat is that the 'book' of instructions/interpretations is a mere folded paper and does not include interpretations of reversed cards at all. Very disappointed in the book, but love the cards. They're beautiful and very peaceful.

This has become my favorite deck! I've read and taught the Tarot for over 20 years, using various decks, but usually going back to the RWD for its accurate and rich symbolism. The deck was given to me without any paperwork to explain the meanings, so I read entirely from intuition, allowing the artwork to stimulate me. It is proving to allow me to provide very accurate and insightful readings. This is probably not a good deck for beginners simply because of the lack of descriptive pictures for the pip cards. It is very beautiful and evocative. I would recommend seeing it before purchasing, unless, like me, you like collecting decks even if you know you may never want to use them regularly. Every person is unique and what speaks to one person, may leave another cold. It's very personal, especially for tools of divination. I absolutely love this deck!

This deck is beautiful and if you're interested in a deck that is visually incredible, I would recommend this Crystal Tarot or the Thoth Tarot aka the Crowley Deck. But the Crystal Tarot is one of the most beautiful, in my opinion,
Good luck and have a blast with whichever deck you choose, or with whichever deck chooses you!