Visconti Tarots deck (Cards)

~ Lo Scarabeo (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

An absolutely stunning display of lavish gold foil and exquisite Renaissance art, this deck is pure magic and mystery! The shimmering gold reflects the light, seducing the intuition and delighting the eye. This deck is a treasure, truly a must-have for all Tarot enthusiasts. Originally commissioned in 1450 by the Duke of Milan, and attributed to Bonifacio Bembo, this is a reproduction of the oldest extant Tarot deck.

This product includes 78 full-color cards and 9 cards with instructions.  No booklet included.

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
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738700193
• ISBN-13: 978-0738700199
• Product Dimensions: 4.9 x 2.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #162,370 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gorgeous recreation of the oldest known tarot cards, July 10, 2001

By	TarotGirl "Gisela" (Springfield, MA) - See all my reviews

This deck is a wonderful restoration of the original vibrant colors and the shiney gold backgrounds that made the original Tarot cards from the 1400s so beautiful. (It isn't a reproduction deck that copies every faded and muddy color and every tear and pin hole and scratch on the 500+ year old cards found in museums. There are other deck editions that do that.)

The publishers have added numbers and titles in a frame along the left side of the cards since the originals never had any titles on them. The only flaw with this modern "convenience" is that a few of the pip cards are reproduced upside down, which can be very irritating at first. However, the deck is such a joy to look at and use that I got over that mistake pretty quickly.

I highly recommend this deck to anyone who wants to use an antique deck with authentic Renaissance imagery, especially RenFair tarotists.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beutiful recreation of the oldest known tarot deck, October 21, 2002

By	Uri Raz (Israel) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a recreation of the Pierpont-Morgan Visconti tarot deck, done in amazing colors. The art and colors are so delicate, I'm seeing this deck more as a piece of art than a deck to read with.

As noted by a previous reviewer, this is *not* a reproduction - if you're interested in a reproduction, you can buy the one by U.S. Games or view it on the web.

The reproduction is rather large - too large to comfortably shuffle in a reading, and shows the damages done to the cards over the past few centuries.

The recreation restores the colours as well as the four missing cards, including a devil card which is more faithful to the tradition of of devil cards at the 15th century than the replacement card in U.S. Games' reproduction.

If you want to read with an authentic & beutiful deck, I recommend this one.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blows your mind away, March 22, 2004

By A Customer

I was looking to have a second tarot deck and decided this would make a suitable choice.... I recived the deck and was immidately blown away by the these cards.... They among the most beautiful cards I seen to date. In fact now it puts me in a delimma, as I want to keep these cards for their beauty, rather than use them. Thus now I am looking to get a thrid deck for everyday use... I know there is the US Games version that is bigger, but bigger takes away their card-like practicality.

I recomend that if you need to have a beautiful deck for use or for collecting. This deck is one you should seriously consider. But if after buying it you find they too beautiful to use, then I like to welcome you to the club of admiration of these cards.