Initiatory Tarot of the Golden Dawn Deluxe (Lo Scarabeo Decks) (English and Spanish Edition) [Cards]

Lo Scarabeo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2008 | Series: Lo Scarabeo Decks

The Golden Dawn is one of the most influential and respected systems of magic in the world. Inspired by the Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn, this magical tarot captures the esoteric spirituality and mysticism of an ancient yet vibrant tradition. This stunning tarot offers a path—built on the tenets of high magic—that leads to transformation and enlightenment.

Deluxe edition (4½ x 6 7/10) includes 78 full-color cards, instructions, and an embroidered satin bag

 

Publisher Review #1:

The concept of this deck is fascinating. A knowledgeable deck designer and historian, Giordano Berti, used primary source material to create instructions and direction for an artist who has not viewed other versions of Golden Dawn or Golden Dawn-tradition-based decks. This allows for an entirely fresh composition and depiction of these meanings, including illustrated pips. This deck moves away from numeric pips, expanding on the original design (just as Waite and Smith did) to create the first truly all-pictorial Golden Dawn deck What an exciting technique to create a deck that is based on a specific foundation but not derivative. Is this what the tarot world has been waiting for? Is this a step in evolution for tarot, a way to break out of the clone rut? Time and usage by readers will tell.  .  .  .  read more. 

Publisher Review #2: 

Before discussing the deck itself, I’d like to look at the LWB (Little White Booklet) that accompanies the deck. Because Lo Scarabeo sends decks all over the world, their LWBs are in multiple languages, resulting, unfortunately, in even less information than is found in decks from other publishers. This one, however, uses its limited space very effectively. It doesn’t describe the symbolism on each card (you can look at the card), but does give the divinatory meaning based on the Golden Dawn system. The creative force behind the deck, Giordano Bertia, only gave basic information about the meanings of the cards to artist Patrizio Evangelisti, so on this basis, the deck is a Golden Dawn deck. The LWB also includes an original six-card spread called the "Method of the Rosacroce." It has a unique method of selecting the cards for the layout, but the meaning of the positions for the cards is fairly mundane. .  .  .  .  read more.

 

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, 2008)
• Language: English, Spanish
• ISBN-10: 0738714615
• ISBN-13: 978-0738714615
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,469,347 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Golden Dawn Tarot for the 21st Century, January 23, 2009

By 

W "Neko-san" (CA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Initiatory Tarot of the Golden Dawn Deluxe (Lo Scarabeo Decks) (English and Spanish Edition) (Cards)

This Tarot deck is an interesting new rendition inspired on the Golden Dawn's tradition as intended by its designer, Giordano Berti. Patrizio Evangelisti`s beautiful artwork resembles contemporary comic book style. Black inked outlines and tones define the images, while contrasting colors and soft shadows fleshed out the scenery.

In the Golden Dawn Tarot, the suites are evidently associated with the four elements: wands with fire, chalices with water, swords with air, and pentacles with earth. This association is more prominent within the court cards, showing figures within flames for wands, on a shore for chalices, within clouds for swords, and on a grassy field for pentacles. These have been labeled Princess, Prince, Queen and Knight like in the Thoth Tarot.

The Mayor Arcanas are labeled the same way as in the Rider-Waite or Marseilles Tarots, and the imagery shows evidence of both traditions for most of these Trumps. However, a few lean more toward one tradition than the other. Such are the case of The Chariot, Death and The Sun Trumps which leans toward Marseilles, while The Wheel of Fortune leans toward Rider-Waite. There are a few Trumps that are beyond Rider-Waite and Marseilles traditions. For example: The Fool depicts an innocent child sitting on the grass with a wolf watching over, and The Lovers depicts a warrior coming from a cloud to confront a sea serpent which is about to attack a chained maiden.

An interesting feature of this deck is the inclusion of an additional set of Justice and Strength cards, swapping 8s and 11s on these cards to allow you to match either Rider-Waite or Marseilles ordering. At least that was the intention. My deck contains a card with a scene of a girl standing by a lion which is Strength (8), and another with a woman sitting on a throne with a sword and scales at hands which is Justice (11). However, a second card with a girl standing by a lion was labeled Justice (11), while a second card with a woman sitting on a throne with a sword and scales at hands was labeled Strength (8). This is an error as the names should have not been swapped. It may be just my deck, but beware.

I recommend this deck for tarot collectors in general, and for those interested on the Golden Dawn tradition in particular. It includes a satin bag and the usual Little White Book.

Other decks by Patrizio Evangelisti:

Initiatory Tarot of the Golden Dawn Deck (Lo Scarabeo Decks)

5.0 out of 5 stars Graphic Novel Comic Imagery meets the Golden Dawn Tarot and the result is Eye Candy!, January 16, 2011

By 

Thanosztitan (las pinas Philippines) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Initiatory Tarot of the Golden Dawn Deluxe (Lo Scarabeo Decks) (English and Spanish Edition) (Cards)

This is a beautiful picturesque deck, that tells the story with striking images! A modern comic book feel for the modern Tarot Reader! Some Images are Sexy or nude, some are heroic in nature. Easy to use if you are familiar with Rider Waite decks, or just use intuition. In my opinion this is the best looking Golden Dawn deck if you like your images with a graphic novel contemporary modern feel that reflects the art style of today's comic book artist.

I haven't studied Golden Dawn symbology much, so i can't say for certain how accurate they are but this is one hell (or heavenly) deck especially for admirers of the female form <ahem> !

The Mythical Theme also brings passion to the imagery, highly recommended!