About this item
- The Hanson-Roberts Tarot is the deck I learnt to read with.. it's an easy to understand one for beginners and has
- positive, slightly medieval artwork that was originally drawn in coloured pencil. Some of the humans look a little odd, but
- it grows on you.
Specifications
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Name
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Hanson-Roberts Tarot
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Creators
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Mary Hanson-Roberts
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Publisher
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US Games 1985
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Deck Type
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Tarot Deck
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Cards
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78
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Major Arcana
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22
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Minor Arcana
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56
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Deck Tradition
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Rider-Waite-Smith
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Minor Arcana Style
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RWS-Based Scenes
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Suits
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Cups, Swords, Rods, Pentacles
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Court Cards
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Page, Knight, Queen, King
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Major Titles
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The Fool, The Magician, The High Priestess, The Empress, The Emperor, The Hierophant, The Lovers, The Chariot, Strength, The Hermit, Wheel of Fortune, Justice, The Hanged Man, Death, Temperance, The Devil, The Tower, The Star, The Moon, The Sun, Judgment, The World
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The Fool
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is Unnumbered
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Strength
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is 8
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Justice
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is 11
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Card Size
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2.37 x 3.87 in. = 6.03cm x 9.84cm
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Card Language
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Spanish, Italian, German, French, English
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Card Back
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Reversible
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Back Design
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Celtic knotwork design in green, yellow and pink on blue.
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Companion Material
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Small companion leaflet usually accompanies this deck in its several editions.
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Reviews
deck for novice and seasoned readers alike.
Accomplished artist Mary Hanson-Roberts' primary goal appears
to have been to provide an aesthetically pleasing,
manageable deck that is a very faithful rendition of the
Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) system. Toward that end, her use of colored
pencil, printed on high-quality plastic-coated card stock,
provides a deck is quite durable with colors that are quite
vivid without becoming garish.
It is easy to see why
this deck is intensely popular, especially among novice
readers. Hanson-Robert's artwork is, of course,
extraordinary. In addition, the small size of the deck (roughly
playing-card size: approximately 3-15/16" x 2-3/8") facilitates
handling. This is a particular advantage not only for
readers who find the larger decks cumbersome, but also for
those who prefer to allow the querant, who is likely to
be unaccustomed to handling the
"larger-than-standard-size" of most Tarot decks, to shuffle prior to reading.
Although Hanson-Robert's faithfulness to the RWS system and
small-sized cards is often considered an advantage, it appears
that she took little opportunity for her own creativity
to add to the system. Further, although the size of
the deck indeed facilitates handling for many, one may
get the impression that the small size of the cards
required that many symbolic details may have been omitted
to prevent the cards from appearing overly "crowded."
In short, where the Hanson-Roberts Tarot has
advantages in aesthetics and size, it appears to have
significant deficits in salient symbolic representation.
This
deck is usually accompanied by a standard little white
book (LWB), which is adequate in that it provides a
brief description of some of the traditional card
meanings and the "Celtic Cross" spread. Consistent with
the popularity of this deck, however, there are two
companion books available specifically for these cards.
Tarot Unveiled: The Method to its Magic by Laura Clarson
is illustrated with the Hanson-Roberts deck and
details a marvelous and easy-to-comprehend basic system
for Tarot interpretation. Additionally, Susan
Hansson's The Hanson-Roberts Tarot Companion has also been
met with considerable accolades.
In sum, the
Hanson-Roberts Tarot is an ideal deck for the beginning reader
and more seasoned readers who prefer a faithful,
attractive, rendition of the RWS system. It's size makes for
ease of handling as well as portability, which should
please both novices and experienced readers alike.
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