About this item
- The Masonic Tarot is an attractive 78 card deck inspired by the symbolism of the Freemasons. The major arcana have
- themed tarot scenes, while the minor arcana are simple, unillustrated pip cards.
Specifications
Name
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Masonic Tarot
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Creators
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Patrizio Diaz Silva
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Publisher
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Lo Scarabeo 2016
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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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Suits
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Mallets, Gold, Chalices, Swords
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Court Cards
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Knave, Knight, Queen, King
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Card Size
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2.76 x 4.72 in. = 7.00cm x 12.00cm
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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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Black and white central checkerboard pattern, surrounded by red squares with sun, moon, chain, and triangle designs.
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Companion Material
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Little white booklet in English, Italian, Spanish, French, German, and Russian.
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Reviews
The founders of the Golden Dawn – Woodman, Westcott, and MacGregor Mathers - were all Masons so it is not surprising that the Golden Dawn hierarchy and initiation rituals were similar to Masonic lodges. Aleister Crowley claimed to be a Mason, he certainly ordered some of the OTO to resemble the hierarchy and structure of Freemasonry. And of course A. E. Waite was a Freemason.
This is a 78 card tarot deck, with 22 Major Arcana cards and 56 Minor Arcana cards. The suits are Mallets/Wands/Earth, Chalice/Cups/Water, Gold/Pentacles/Fire, and Sword/Swords/Air – and feature 10 number cards as well as a Knave, Knight, Queen, and King.
The Major Arcana is fully illustrated but the Minor Arcana are pip cards, with only the Court cards being illustrated.
The illustrations for the Major Arcana are deceptively simple and appear almost sparse, however the frames around the images are all individual and contain a plethora of symbols and cues. The Minor Arcana have colour-coded frames, but the illustrations themselves are cut and paste compositions featuring the unimaginative repetition of a single image representing each suit.
The cards measure 70 x 120 mm which makes them a standard sized deck for Lo Scarabeo (the publisher). The card stock is, unsurprisingly, excellent - smooth, flexible with a high gloss finish. The deck has a nice weight to it, and shuffles extremely well.
The print quality is superb with the illustrations being reproduced with clarity. There are no blurred images, no misprints,no colour bleeds.
The artwork is unusual, best described as studied amateurishness – a combination of naive art and contrived rusticity. Strong geometric lines and shapes are offset by soft colours; and figures that are stiffly posed are delicate in their facial expressions.
The colour schemes too are a study in contrasts – bold, harsh reds and blues are moderated by lovely pastels.
The print on the back features Masonic symbols
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