About this item
- The Golden Moth Illumination Deck is a charming divination and inspiration deck of 75 cards. The blue and gold card
- imagery is wholly original and is reminiscent of storybook line drawings. Self-published in a limited edition of 300 decks.
Specifications
Name
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Golden Moth Illumination Deck
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Creators
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Aijung Kim
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Publisher
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Self Published 2012
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Deck Type
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Oracle Deck
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Cards
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75
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Deck Tradition
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Mixed
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Card Size
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2.17 x 3.25 in. = 5.52cm x 8.26cm
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Card Language
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None
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Back Design
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Stylised moth in gold and white on blue
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Reviews
years now — since I first purchased a copy of her zine,
We Carry Each Other (I later purchased another copy
to gift to my mother — it affected me so
profoundly). So I was thrilled when she sent a letter to her
mailing list about a divination deck that she had
created and started a Kickstarter campaign for. I didn’t
even hesitate in supporting the project and a few
weeks ago I received my backer’s award — a copy of the
finished deck.
The deck is so special. You realize this
as soon as you have the package in your hands. Kim
sent a copy of the cards in a sturdy tuck-box, the
handbook that accompanies the cards, a spreadsheet
poster, a postcard of her work, a doodle and her
business card to her backers. My copy is 83/300. Yes,
there are only 300 copies of this. Go get one now.
Kim
illustrated 68 cards, but includes seven blank cards (with
encouragement to draw your own symbols). The printing is
two-color, blue and gold, and the illustrations are simple
line-style drawings. The cards are approximately bridge
sized and the stock is a thick, uncoated card-stock. You
could riffle shuffle, but I’m not sure I would. I’d
like to think my precious copy will last for years and
years, but it’s definitely not a deck for taking to
the pub or reading where coffee-cups totter
tenaciously nearby. So far as I can tell, the box is of the
same stock. It’s lovely to the hand, but feels
ephemeral (beautiful, mind you — do not hesitate to
purchase this deck — but it is delicate).
The handbook is
another treasure all together. While reading through it
I realized this was entirely hand-lettered. When
this became apparent to me — Kim’s lovely hand and
straight lines — my respect for her as an artist went WAY
WAY UP. This is truly a handmade endeavor.
The
symbols are non-traditional and untitled. Kim doesn’t
explain the cards in the manual, rather she encourages
the user to intuit their own meanings based on the
context of the reading. The style one might approach this
deck is similar to how a Lenormand may be read,
though the Golden Moth’s symbols are more abstract and
surreal than what you’d find in a historical
cartomantic deck. She doesn’t mention it in the handbook,
but the numbers may be useful if you fancy a bit of
numerology. Kim also includes a spread poster designed
specifically for the deck and suggests other spreads in the
book, along with transcripts of sample readings.
I’ve
already used the cards on several readings, completely
satisfied with the results. Though the use of surprising,
non-traditional symbols requires a bit of flexibility on the
user, the fluid nature of the deck works just perfectly
for me. If you can look at pictures and make up a
story, you’ll find this deck a treasure in your
collection.
And finally, I recommend this deck because Aijung
Kim makes art and it’s good art. And this deck rings
true to the heart of an artist — which is so rare in
the world of divinatory cards, where so many decks
are mass-produced by hired guns. The Golden Moth
Illumination Deck speaks to me as an artist, as someone who
could only tell my story through pictures that are
meaningful to me. Kim accomplishes that and more with this
little nugget. And you can bet it’ll soon be as rare and
precious as gold itself.
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