Customer Reviews

Lo Scarabeo Tarot Deluxe (English and Spanish Edition)

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3 star:		(2)
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Normally I am not a big fan of Lo scarabeo decks as I have found them to be mostly generic looking and the artwork did not fit my spiritual concept of the Tarot. Now comes the Lo scarabeo tarot and I must say first that the reason this deck is as good as it is is because it was overseen by Mr. Mark McElroy. What they have done is combine the symbolism of the Waite, Thoth and Marseilles decks respectively and the images really act as a perfect conduit with the Psyche when working with this deck. I highly recommend this deck for meditation, readings and furthering ones spiritual understand of the Tarot. This is the only Lo Scarobeo deck you'll ever need (Okay, I do like the Fey Tarot as well). I cannot thank Mark McElroy enough for playing such a crucial part in the brilliant excecution of this deck, and the artist he worked with did such a fantastic job translating his vision into a truly spectacular deck. Bravo Lo Scarabeo and well done.
Renaissance Moon

I love the illustrations themselves-I find them fantastic-the visuals and melding of other decks-really great symbolism.

I do not like some of the facial expressions-some are a little too cartoony looking and others are bland... though some do fit the card.

I was disappointed in the vibrancy of the colors. I expected them to be more like the radiant Rider Waite deck, but many of the colors are a bit more washed out than I would expect from a newer deck. There's definitely color, but just not as bright as I had hoped.

All that being said, I am looking forward to working with this deck on my own for awhile and see how it feels...that will tell the whole story. As I mentioned, I think the illustrations are very well done and the symbolism is right on- clear with layers to pick up on as you get in-tune with these specific cards. I think, in time, I will be able to use this as an alternative deck for readings.

Whether you are a collector or looking for a well-illustrated deck with plenty of symbolism I think this deck will be quite useful.

"To commemorate their twentieth year in business, the team at Lo Scarabeo decided to commission the development of a flagship deck. Rather than produce a hastily conceived and sterile `corporate deck', Lo Scarabeo wanted the Lo Scarabeo Tarot to be both a tribute to the company's achievements and a powerful tool for divination, reflection, and metaphysical study." - From the LWB

Attempting to meld the "big three" decks of the Tarot World--the Tarot de Marseilles (TdM), Thoth and Rider-Waite (RW)--would be no small feat, yet that is precisely the bold step taken by Italian publisher Lo Scarabeo.

In the adept hands of writer/deck creator Mark McElroy and watercolorist Anna Lazzarini, the Lo Scarabeo Tarot pays homage to these three influential traditions by incorporating symbols from each tradition with a fresh unifying vision.

What could become a mish-mash of Frankensteinian proportions in less able hands turns out to be a surprisingly congruent deck in the hands of McElroy (who wrote the script guides) and Lazzarini. Understandably, the Lo Scarabeo is not an "equal parts" deck, where every card reflects every symbol, coloration and human expression of the TdM, Thoth and RW imagery.

Rather, the Lo Scarabeo Tarot draws inspiration from each of the "big three" traditions, attempting to capture the spirit of the diverse systems if not the letter itself in all cases.

For example, the 10 of Pentacles shows a white-haired man holding a suspended arrangement of gold coins. A young girl stands to his left, while a dog sits to his right. The arrangement of gold coins are straight from the Tree of Life arrangement in the 10 of Disks card in the Thoth deck (sans the green symbols), while the elderly robed gentleman, child and dog are a nod to the Rider-Waite.

Another example is the 9 of Swords. An individual sits on the floor, head in hands, while a wall montage shows nine curved swords dripping with blood. The worried appearance of the figure echoes the person in the RW card, while the curved swords are arranged like the pips in TdM decks. The dripping blood no doubt reflects the raining red drops from the corresponding Thoth card.

While many (most?) Lo Scarabeo decks cry for a full-length book to explain their imagery and inspiration, the Lo Scarabeo flagship deck needs no more than the LWB (provided that the reader is familiar with basic Tarot structure, since the LWB provides only keywords for Light and Shadow meanings).

So while this deck can certainly be used "out of the box", those unfamiliar with one or more of the "big three" traditions would benefit from a comprehensive beginners book that can be used with any deck, or a book written specifically for a particular tradition.

(For excellent books that can be used with any deck, I highly recommend McElroy's Absolute Beginner's Guide to Tarot and Mary K. Greer's 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card. For more information on the Rider-Waite tradition, Joan Bunning's Learning the Tarot is quite good. For those wanting to acquaint themselves with the heady, foreboding Thoth deck, I recommend Lon Milo DuQuette's Understanding Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot).

One added bonus of the LWB that accompanies the Lo Scarabeo Tarot is the Lo Scarabeo Tarot Spread. Truly, it's been quite some time since I've found such an insightful, contemplative spread for personal use--to the point that I drug out my readings journal (which hadn't been used for a year!) to record the spread and my thoughts.

Admittedly, I didn't like some of the renderings in the Lo Scarabeo Tarot at first blush. In fact, the Tower card alone made me want to hate this deck. However, I decided to get to know it over a few weeks, thoughtfully comparing this deck to my copies of the Thoth, Universal Waite and Jean Noblet Tarot.

For some reason, I kept picking up this deck, even using it for a BIT Snapshot in my upcoming book because of its subtle ability to convey a range of information on multiple levels (many decks don't seem to do this for me).

Although I still find some cards distracting, underwhelming or irritating (the nude buxom woman in the 6 of Cups, the sparse Wheel of Fortune, the angry looking God-eye striking a building in The Tower, the desolate Death card, a lackluster 7 of Cups, the nude girl as the Knave of Swords, an inexplicable 8 of Wands with a kiddish rainbow and so on), several cards are clever, arresting and even beautiful.

I love the Knight of Swords flying through the air brandishing a sword upon a bridled bird sporting a snazzy blue outfit with white clouds. The figure in the 10 of Wands carries latticed sticks upon his back (much like the TdM pips), but this particular burden happens to be smoking at the tips. Talk about "burn out"!

While the Devil card creeped me out at first with its menacing second mouth gaping from the belly, it didn't take me long to associate this unusual depiction with the "desires of the belly"--those animalistic instincts that, at best, can be thrilling when indulged...or, at worst, a bane leading to craving, addiction and destruction.

Strength is Trump 8 in the Lo Scarabeo Tarot, while Justice is Trump 11. The Court Cards are Knave, Knight, Queen and King. Oddly, McElroy discusses at length (well, for a LWB!) the "gender unbalanced" TdM and RW courts, explaining his reason for choosing King, Queen, Prince and Princess. However, those are NOT the court names that end up on the cards!

The fully reversible backings are surprisingly unattractive for a flagship deck, with two large creepy, crawly scarabs painted in gray with a dreary washed out black background. Considering the borders along the frontal images are white with gold, I think a lighter, perhaps golden, motif would have been more appropriate (either that or make the frontal borders black like that of the Universal Fantasy deck for the sake of cohesiveness). The cards measure approximately 4 ¾ x 2 ½ inches.

The deluxe edition of the Lo Scarabeo Tarot comes with a large black velvet bag embroidered with a golden scarab symbol. Black satin drawstrings tipped with golden satin fabric complete this lovely pouch, and this added bonus is the only difference between the regular deck and deluxe box set.

If you're looking for an accessible deck that dares to marry three differing Tarot tradition, you'll want to check out the Lo Scarabeo Tarot. Those who own a version of the TdM and RW decks, as well as the Thoth, will enjoy going through the "big three" symbolism in comparison to the Lo Scarabeo Tarot (I know I did!). Lazzarini has a great eye for composition and a skilled hand for realistic renderings, and McElroy's scripted guidance directs the symbolism through familiar, though diverse, terrains.

(To see 12 images from the Lo Scarabeo 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)

The artistry of this deck by Anna Lazzarini is amazing. What impressed me was Mark McElroy's ability to successfully "merge" three main tarot traditions into a single deck. Somehow, the combination of these two talents added up to an original, but still classic tarot deck.

At first, I was apprehensive on getting this deck. How can you possibly merge Marseilles, Rider-Waite and Thoth tarots? This thought held me back for a long time. Until I got the Manga Tarot by Anna Lazzarini. Her artistry was good enough for me to make the leap of faith, and I bought this deck with only looking at few samples over the internet.

And I was rewarded! As expected, this deck is beautiful, but the interpretations of the cards are exquisite as well. Mark McElroy came up with an original imagery for each card that uses the three mayor traditions instead of just merging it. It works well enough for me to spend hours comparing each card on this deck with their equivalent in the Marseilles, Rider-Waite and Thoth decks.

This is a good deck for tarot collectors that collect and study these three traditions. It includes a bag and the usual Little White Book.

Other decks by Anna Lazzarini:
Manga Tarot
LoScarabeo Tarot

This is my favorite deck I own, and I own over ten. I spent two months looking for the perfect tarot deck, and for me this was it. The symbolism is very close to that of older styled decks, yet modern. Most cards can be looked at and the meanings figured out by the pictures alone. Doesn't come with a big book, but a mini booklet. I wish it had came with an actual book for the deck. The pouch is also too big for the cards in my opinion. But those things aren't that important. The deck is still just awesome!

I got the Deluxe Lo Scarabeo Tarot Deck and Bag about a month ago and have been putting it thru its paces, and I have decided I just love this deck! Very nice. Deck, LWB and bag are included. The standard LWB (little white booklet)has some nice additions, but the instructions in English only take the first 14 pages, the rest are in other languages. I especially like the Scarab spread, a nine card spread based on the company's logo Scarab beetle. I have used the deck and scarab spread several times now and they really resonate accurately, gives good insight. I like the spread so much I re-typed it larger so I could use it easily as the image and numbered card positions are on page 2 of the LWB, and the location meanings are on page 10, so it saves flipping and wear and tear. A big book would be nice, tho, that would expand on the LWB.

The deck is a 20 year commemorative deck to celebrate Lo Scarabeo's 20 years in business, and is meant to be a flagship deck with inspiration drawn from the Thoth, Waite-Smith, and Marseilles decks. The backs of the cards are reversible, and are dark gray with the scarab logo in lighter gray. Even though I am not very familiar with Thoth or Marseilles decks, I found these cards easy to read. Some of my favorite cards are the King of Swords, who is holding a head by the hair in one hand and a sword in the other! ouch. Well, to be fair, the Queen of Swords gets equal time and has her own severed head, too. The Knight of Wands is riding a lion, the Tower shows a vengeful eye shooting lightening at the tower, and on the Justice card shows the typical Lady with sword and scales, but with a blindfolded baby in a basket. Is she about to cut the poor kid in half? The 9 of Swords is spooky, showing a young man sitting with head in hands, and on the wall are nine swords dripping blood. Who did he kill? Or did he? Tiny details on some cards are incredible, other cards are plain and teenybopper cute.

While the bag that comes with this set is a beautiful black velveteen with the Lo Scarabeo logo embroidered on the front in gold and lined with gold cloth, it is big enough for the deck, the LWB, a few crystals, a folded up cloth for readings, and possibly a book, snacks, lunch, or clothing for a weekend getaway. Maybe a bottle of wine and a few candles, too. It is slight overkill on size. the cards are a standard 2 5/8ths by 4 1/4 inches, the bag is 8 1/4" wide at the bottom and 5" wide at the top, and is 8" tall. It's a great size if you do carry other supplies with to do readings-cards, crystals, cloth, maybe a small candle or a small tarot book.

All in all, it's a nice package deal and I would recommend this deck to beginner or advanced readers.

This deck is friendly and easy to communicate. The images are rich and meaningful, great for both beginners and advanced readers. It's also beautiful enough to have in your collection.

However, the booklet has only few of words to describe the deck, and only one keyword for each card, so if you want more details for beginners, you should have it with a basic Tarot guidebook.