Written and Illustrated by Lisa Tenzin-Dolma 

© 1999 Wieser Books

The Glastonbury Tarot is similar to other Arthurian-inspired Tarot decks.  It seems to be a modern blend of spirituality and philosophy from the days of King Arthur.  The setting of this deck is the town of Glastonbury in Somerset, England.  Glastonbury is rich with myths and legends and is alleged to be the Isle of Avalon and King Arthur's place of burial.

Although not pictured in the sample card images above, the actual cards have a thin, white border and a surrounding black outer border.  The card names are printed in white at the bottom of each card.  The actual scenes in the cards are done in bright colors, and although they are somewhat simple without a lot of detail, the beautiful colors and simple art leave things uncluttered and are really attractive in their own kind of way.  All 78 cards of this deck were created from original oil paintings by Lisa Tenzin-Dolma.

Each of the Major Arcana are traditionally named, with Justice as card 8 and Strength as card 11, and each of the Major cards are associated with a legendary or historical person or place.  The associated place, person, or myth is noted in the border with the card name.

In the Minor Arcana, the four suits used are Chalices, Staffs, Swords, and Vesicas.  The Vesica is a symbol for energy grounding and balance.

The cards do have a glossy coating which will tend to make them stick.  This can be rather annoying, but the stickiness will diminish and wear off through time and use.

An excellent and well-written book comes with this deck.  It's a valuable resource for both the new Tarot reader and the experienced alike.  I enjoyed reading the book, as it gives information about the legends, people, and places associated with Glastonbury.  It's a very user-friendly book, easy to understand, and offers a wealth of information and useful card interpretations.   Also included in the book are well-tried Glastonbury spreads, and other authentic ways to read and use this tarot.

Paganism, Christianity, and the Arthurian legend all play prominent roles in the history of this era, and each is represented in the Glastonbury Tarot.

Here is an excerpt from the back of the accompanying book:

"Written in a clear and concise style for the complete beginner, this friendly companion to the 78-card Glastonbury Tarot deck describes the image on each card as it relates to the figures in the myths and legends of Glastonbury and the symbols in the landscape.  The divinatory archetypal meanings of each card are explained and seven well-tried Glastonbury spreads are laid out as easy-to-use examples.  The suits correspond to the four elements of the Glastonbury tradition -- staff, chalice, sword, vesica.

The Glastonbury Tarot is a blending of philosophical paths taking the reader through the Pagan, Christian, and Arthurian history of Avalon.  This journey through the Glastonbury Tarot is the journey we all undertake through life, focused and concentrated within the area of land, but relevant everywhere."

Number of Cards in Deck: 78 cards (22 Major/56 Minor)

Size of Cards:  3-1/8" x 4-3/4"

Included with deck: 167-page book which is written clearly and concisely to enable even a beginner to use these cards with ease.

Major Arcana:

0 - The Fool - Percival I - The Magician - Merlin II - The High Priestess - Morgana III - The Empress - Guinevere IV - The Emperor - Arthur V - The Hierophant - Joseph of Arimathea VI - The Lovers - Creiddylad and Gwythyr VII - The Chariot - The Barge of Avalon VIII - Justice - Arviragus IX - The Hermit - St. Collen X - The Wheel of Fortune - The Glastonbury Zodiac

XI - Strength - Gog and Magog XII - The Hanged Man - The Fisher King XIII - Death - Gwyn Ap Nudd XIV - Temperance - Brigit XV - The Devil - St. Dunstan XVI - The Tower - The Tor XVII - The Star - Bride's Mound XVIII - The Moon - Chalice Hill XIX - The Sun - The Grail XX - Judgement - St. Michael XXI - The World - The Phoenix

Suit Names: (non-traditional suit names are in blue)
Chalices (Cups), Staffs (Wands), Swords, Vesicas (Pentacles)

Court Cards: (Traditional titles are noted in parenthesis.)
King, Queen, Knight, Maid (Page)

Back Design of Cards:
 

THE GLASTONBURY TAROT This Tarot Deck and Book Set is Available from Amazon.com

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The image above is the 8 of Chalices from the Glastonbury Tarot.