The Mary-El Tarot

First of all, I have to give this deck 5 stars no matter what because the artwork on this deck is just art gallery worthy. Not in a long time of Tarot have I seen a deck as beautifully done in an artistic way as I've seen this deck... with that said... I first saw this deck online and thought "hmmm what a great deck for my friend." She got the deck and showed it to me. I, thinking I have enough decks and was quite content in my current ambition of whittling my deck collection down; thought when I see this deck in person I could probably control myself because after all I have my favorites already (Inner Child Cards, Thoth, Touchstone Tarot, etc.). So she shows me this long tobacco/cigar type of box and I nearly fell of the chair. We both agreed with how well Schiffer knows how to present their decks (so much so that I'm considering buying more Schiffer divination sets). It has a sturdy magnetic closure, its like getting served a fine cigar to you as one opens it. So when she opened the box I basically peed my pants... It never fails, but whenever I buy a deck based on online images I am always disappointed when I see the cards in person. Never are they as vibrant as what they seem to be online. BUT THIS DECK IS A RARE EXCEPTION. .. OMG so extremely beautiful!! If in any other reviews I've said the artwork of a deck is beautiful, I was lying because this one is exceptionally beautifully balanced color and clarity to the art... its so art gallery worthy... its so rich. So that was my OMG moment, I'll talk more about the cards themselves HOW IT READS: It may be overwhelming for some people... the artwork as its a little bit of David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust feel to it crossed with the rogue of Mad Max. Some of the images may be controversial (like the Heirophant as its a nun breast feeding two huge alien heads) and there is a lot of nudity of a hermaphaditic nature. So its not uncommon to find a human form that has breasts and a penis. There are also a lot of beautiful serene cards of kids that are of pure form (no confusion of sex with the kiddie cards). There are nice images of strong animal totems found throughout the deck too (Water Tiger for Temperance) not to mention beautiful scenic pictures with no human/alien/animals (4 of disks, a winding wooded path that leads one through the mountains). Its a very empathic deck. With that said it doesn't read like your regular RW or Thoth, etc. Its a combination of all. You may not always infer the meanings of the cards from the pictures, which makes one realize you have to be more intuitive with this deck at times. The LWB details the history of the Kaballah and other tarot traditions and gives you insight in her vision of the card. So the card meanings provided is RW, White's take, Thoth, and other traditional forms with a blended history of the Kaballa. So you can read this deck in any way you intend to. I prefer reading the cards according to White's interpretations as there is much more depth and accuracy. Her meanings tend to touch on the abyss... the stuff that blends the reality of the situation with the psychological aspects of the situation which often gets hidden in an average reading. I find this deck accurate... and gives insight you've never gathered before. OVERALL The deck is so beautiful I hate reading with it because I don't want to destroy it despite having a pretty solid cardstock to boot. I tend to look at the cards and long for that distant galaxy or planet where all of these people or messengers in this deck may come to speak from. Because the meanings can be unique, its not the first deck I jump to for a quick read.. .but if I want to gain a 3rd perspective, its an awesome deck. It also predicts well, I've had a good predictive streak of runs with this deck. Due to the nature of the artwork, it may make some people squeamish, or make them relaxed, or make them let go of all preconditioned thoughts. It makes you let go of judgement as the images and forms are soo different you learn to look at the images through their spirit more than their outward message. If you were to look at each person in your life more from the viewpoint of spirit then you will understand what it is the universe asks of you spiritually than of corporeal directions in life... as the universe is both of these things and more... see this deck turns you into the philosopher you never thought you could be. I think this deck is worth everyone buying just for the quality of artwork alone. It has a new way of relating to the nouveau tarot world that I think it will be the next major deck (RW, Thoth, Voyager, now this one).

Given the hundreds, nay, thousands of tarot decks available today, it's difficult to find the wheat among the chaff, but this is a serious tarot deck. I would go so far as to say that this is a legitimate work of art. This is NOT a unicorns and white light, superficial deck. Ms. White has created a system of her own. Her Qabalistic and astrological attributions differ from most decks available today, but in her well-written and comprehensive book, she sets forth her system in such as way that it fits into a cohesive, profound whole. This goes to show that one needn't follow the Golden Dawn, Crowley, Wirth, Levi, or Spanish attributions blindly. Not only are her attributions meaningful, but her artwork is just that: true art. There is not one hint of the Photoshopped, Botox-like expressionless Ephebes and Barbie dolls so prevalent in modern decks; conversely, while she provides images that are disturbing and dark, they always possess an integral and complex beauty, giving her cards through what Aquinas would call "integritas" a life of their own. To be sure, there are breathtakingly lovely images to be found, too, such as the cards of Justice, Judgment (breathtaking and blood-red phoenix), and the Two of Swords. It's just that their beauty is complex and often quirky, à la the face of la Giaconda herself. Furthermore, there is a "fearful symmetry" to her lavishly-illustated pip cards: for example, each Ace displays some aperture through which the essence of the suit may enter the appropriate world. This deck promises many years of fruitful study. Truthfully, only time will tell whether this deck will approach such classic decks as the Noblet TdM, the Wirth, Falconier, Brotherhood of Light, Waite-Smith, Wang, or Crowley decks. Yet it is the first deck in decades that has such gravitas and sheer brilliance of execution. Well done!

This is one of the most wonderful tarot decks I have come across. I am so thankful to Marie White for producing this deep, profound translation of the tarot. I do not resonate with RW translations, I have been stunned to find that in the tarot world there is as much dogma as in any fundamentalist religious group. I had read that Marie wanted to create a balanced Tarot. and after working with this deck for a short time I realize what she has done, is break away from the duality theme that permeates RW tradition. Rather than the good/evil archetypes that dominate tarot world. she has drawn images that show much more depth. balance as she says. light and dark balanced, male/female balanced, yin/yang balanced. What a refreshing, illuminating deck this is. Perfect for newcomers to tarot. I am discovering that it seems hard for many folks used to RW translation to let go of that dogma to see a more balanced approach to the the cards. Deep, deep cards, This is a tarot deck that one can explore for long long time and never reach the end of it. Love, love, love this deck. It is helping me separate from my own illusions. Such a profoundly helpful deck, esp. for those who want to move beyond duality mindset.

I followed this deck on the artist's website for a while before it was published - the artwork is exquisite, and the mystic and sometimes tribal feel tickles one's fantasy itch most satisfactorily. Some of the cards have very clear meanings, in alignment with traditional tarot decks of ages past. However, I felt that where the deck diverged from the traditional, I was not always able to follow. I read the accompanying book, and it was a bit rambling, and stuffed full of references to all sorts of mythology and numerology that didn't always link back to the actual card image. I might also complain that the deck is inconsistent in theme. One obvious example is the knights, one of which is a slightly more traditional looking tarot knight, riding an owl, and wearing an ornate helmet (or does he just have an ornate metal head?), one of which is a child riding a tiger, one of which is just a leopard-man creature of some sort, and one of which is a closeup on the torso of an armored, medieval looking knight. Each image on it's own is fine, but together their lack of coherence as members of a set is striking. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the aces all match very nicely, beign hermaphrodites with the heads of a man, eagle, bull, and lion respectively, with similar colored circles tattooed on their bellies. Generally, the feel of the deck ranges from tribal and environmental (simply depicting animals and natural scenes), to occult, to deeply fantastical. It feels a bit piecemeal; my wish might be for this to be divided into two or maybe even three decks, and have each one fleshed out more consistently.

I absolutely love the cards and how each of them are so beautifully done and unique. The book in the set is very well written and has a very unique take on tarot symbolism and meanings. Readings with this deck are as shocking as they are breath taking. I would definitely recommend using this deck to do readings on creatively minded people. The production value of the box set is amazing as well. The box it comes in is not a cheap flimsy throwaway box like in other sets. Instead, the box itself is a collector's piece, made with extremely sturdy cardboard with ribbons attached to the lid to keep it from presentable when opened. The cards are made with a glossy finish and are larger than standard tarot cards, which is great because it brings out the images better. The book is also great and is somewhat thick with black and white pages. Just as a misc. note, the book in my set had rub markings on the cover even when the entire box was shrink wrapped before I opened it. It's a slight manufacturing glitch but it doesn't effect my enjoyment of the set at all. Overall, fantastic deck and one of the best sets ever. 5 stars

I'd wanted this Tarot deck for a VERY long time, but I always hesitated and found an excuse to take it out of the cart. Still, the cards called to me...the artwork I'd seen online was just magickal and inspired (even if a number of reviews called the info in the accompanying book into question, but I was after the cards, not the booklet). So I finally decided there were no more excuses - Mary-El had tormented me enough! I opened the incredibly beautiful box with such a sense of anticipation when it arrived, and I even read a few passages in the accompanying book (which is better than I had expected, to be honest - so bonus!). And then I started looking through the cards in a thorough and reverent fashion - and noticed that the 10 of Swords was altogether missing! I was Devastated!!! (And I also noticed the laminate was coming up on the back of one of the wands cards, but I could have lived with that). I remembered that other customers noted that Schiffer Publishing had very good customer service, so I emailed them about the two issues I was having (unsure of what they'd say because I'm in Australia). They were BRILLIANT. Without hesitation, they sent me two replacement cards in a prompt and friendly fashion. My faith in the universe has been restored, and I'm enjoying this beautiful deck in its entirety. As a deck for reading, I find it a bit too arty and too far away from the RWS system with which I'm comfortable. However, I like to meditate on the pictures and draw inspiration for writing...it seems to work better for that purpose. I can see how it might not be to everyone's tastes -- I recommend thoroughly looking online at the imagery and seeing if you connect with it. I am exceptionally pleased, however, to have this deck in my growing collection and can't praise Schiffer enough for their products or their customer service.

Although I have given this product only three stars, my dissatisfaction does not derive from the cards themselves. The Mary-El Tarot cards are every bit as intriguing and lovely as any other reviewer has already stated. Ms. White writes that her tarots pay homage to three different and important branches of the tarot family: the Marseilles, the Waite-Smith, and the Crowley-Harris. With obvious nods to each throughout, every card is a self-contained work of art that reflects the artist's vision and her internal synthesis of various (and often contradictory) personal and esoteric influences. Having said that, I have studied Tarot under a primarily Golden Dawn framework for almost two decades and feel that I can very often see the point that Ms. White is trying to make in her artwork. At the risk of sounding haughty, I do not recommend this deck as anyone's first deck. These cards are complicated and will require some attention in order to use them well, but I believe that they may eventually be a deck I use with confidence. As an aside, the cards are also wonderfully large and may require some practice shuffling. Unfortunately, after being mezmerized with startling and provocative imagery on nearly every card, I tried to read the book. Schiffer must be scolded for this. Obviously, they employ more typesetters than editors. The introduction bombards the reader with an awkward and trite cut-and-paste style that is so poorly punctuated and disorganized that I pitied Ms. White for being allowed to appear so unprepared by her publisher. The descriptions of the cards fare little better. In the past, I have reveled in reading or listening to an artist explain his or her process. Ms. White tries to explain her cards as Tarot rather than art, and, in the process, becomes so vague and impersonal that she contradicts herself from card to card. In and of itself, the idea of mystical or esoteric contradiction is not bad or, for that matter, uncommon; but Ms. White's skills do seem more artistic than literary (which is why two of most important historical esoteric decks had both a writer and an artist). At the end of each card's description, the reader is also treated to the card's personal meaning and then the card's traditional divinatory meaning. These are unnecessary redundancies, as many are practically verbatim repetition, seemingly included for no other reason than to fill the page. I think the publisher sorely overestimated the need for packaging on this product. What could have been a deck and book(let) set has turned into a package the size of a small boardgame or a box of chocolates, with a hurried and bloated book filling up too much of an otherwise empty box. Finally, I will say this: please buy these cards. If you collect tarots, this will be a fascinating addition to your collection. If you also read tarot, I believe these cards will eventually produce some of your best work. Schiffer alone dropped the proverbial ball on this one by rushing and overpackaging Ms. White's beautiful deck of tarot cards. Enjoy.

I received the Mary-El Tarot today, quite unexpectedly. Amazon has listed it as back-ordered for awhile now, and I hadn't noticed the e-mail telling me it had been shipped ... but suddenly it appeared. I opened the package with some trepidation -- would it live up to the expectations I've had for it over the past four or five years? The answer is an unqualified YES. The presentation is excellent: the sturdy box has a hinged top that stays closed with a hidden magnet. The compartment for the cards is much better quality than many similar boxes. (But it's necessary to tip the whole box over to get all the cards out; the thumb hole doesn't go all the way to the bottom of the box. A ribbon attached to the bottom of the compartment should fix that.) When I pulled the cards out of the box and began my initial quick glance through the deck -- to get a feel for the cards and to make sure they were all there -- the first thing I noticed is that one of the cards was backwards in the deck, and out of order: the Queen of Cups. I set it aside and started going through the rest of the deck, expecting that maybe I'd find another card was missing. But no: they were all there. I just had an extra Queen of Cups. The wise woman in that card is staring at me now as I write this. About her, Marie White says this: "The Queen of Cups _is_ the Holy Grail, the reservoir and container of all our subconscious and ancestral wisdom, the dark waters of the abyss." Oh my. I've now spent two hours going through the deck slowly, card by card, spending a few seconds or a minute on each one, then going back to them again and again. I've never seen a Tarot deck as rich, beautiful, and haunting as this one. The images all seem utterly unique, yet utterly familiar. With every card I have a sense of deep familiarity, as if I've been seeing the images my whole life, but I can't quite name them or remember where I saw them; but every familiar image is also deeply surreal, alien, new. A few initial reactions: --The box describes the Mary-El Tarot as inspired by the three main Tarot traditions: Rider-Waite, Marseille and Thoth. I've had a Thoth deck for a long time, but never really paid much attention to it: Crowley's occultism never appealed to me. But I just took it out again and looked over the cards, and the strong influence of them on the Mary-El is quite apparent (and makes me appreciate Thoth in a way I never have before). Many of the cards in this new deck have the swirling, cosmic feel of the Thoth cards, the multiple layers of surreal symbolism, and the odd presence of simple geometrical forms: a few lines forming a triangle, for example. --Some common elements: lots of runes (I have no idea what they mean); lots of tattoos; a strong eroticism, including explicit male, female and (in the Aces) androgynous nudity; a surprising degree of variation in approach from one card to another, including strong human portraits (the Queen of Cups); landscapes (the Fours); close-up animal "portraits" (the Knight of Wands); symbolic abstraction (7 of Disks); and so on. --The colors are extremely rich and dense: you'll find no airy-fairy pastels here. This is the earthiest Tarot I've ever seen. --Each card has a simple black border that makes the image really pop. The titles are printed in a simple font (maybe too simple; to me it lacks character). --Occasionally the level of detail in the original painting is so fine that it's hard to see in the cards. There's some not-quite-legible writing in the King of Swords, for example. --The style of much of the art is reminiscent of Leo and Diane Dillon, especially their more psychedelic SF/fantasy book covers from the 60s and 70s, which were some of favorite book covers growing up. --There are several cards that didn't appeal to me, or that I actually didn't like, when I first saw the images on the author's website. But today I've found that in every single case, by lingering over the card, looking more closely at the details, and simply questioning their meaning, I've changed my mind. I can honestly say now that there's not a single card in the deck that doesn't strike me as profound and beautiful. --There's also not a single card in the deck that I can really say I understand with anything like a firm grasp of what's going on. That's a good thing! --Is it my imagination or is there quite a bit of biblical imagery in these cards? --The cards are large and glossy. They seem very good quality, but I'm still a little worried how they'll react to much handling. The glossiness is almost sticky, which makes me think they may attract dust and grit which might start to scratch the cards. Also, I do wonder if the edges of the cards will hold up: will the high gloss coating start to peel over time? No idea. But it's a concern. The quality is high, but not as good as the best (i.e., the Kat Black's Golden and Touchstone Tarots). At least that's my first impression. So my conclusion is this: The Mary-El Tarot is (and here's a phrase I usually _loathe_, but it's totally appropriate here) an instant classic. I can hardly conceive that there might be a better Tarot published this year, or this decade. It's that good.