by
~*~Velvet
Angel ~*~
Renaissance
Tarot
This
deck is suitable for any question you wish to ask of the Tarot.
This deck should not be
confused with the "Tarot of the Renaissance" by Giorgio Trevisan.
You
can view that deck here.
by
~*~Velvet
Angel ~*~
Renaissance
Tarot
This
deck is suitable for any question you wish to ask of the Tarot.
This deck should not be
confused with the "Tarot of the Renaissance" by Giorgio Trevisan.
You
can view that deck here.
If purchasing a reading
and you would like for me to use the "Renaissance Tarot" by Brian Williams,
please indicate
RENAISSANCE TAROT BY WILLIAMS in your email
to me when submitting your questions for the cards. This will ensure
that you and I are on the same page with your deck choice :)
Deck and book by Brian
Williams
© 1994
This
is one of those decks where scanned images just can't do justice for the
cards! The cards on the Renaissance Tarot are embellished with a
gold foil-like coloring in the images that make them shiny and really stand
out. The cards are gorgeous!
Author Brian Williams discovered tarot cards around the age of 12 or 13. He has studied art history and has had a long love for classical and Renaissance art. The Renaissance Tarot was a project that was 10 years in the making. It stemmed from a college thesis project, and the cards were first published in the fall of 1987, ten years from the month of their inception.
The Major Arcana cards of this deck portray figures adorned in elaborate costumes and are titled in both the Italian and English languages. The author's intention for this deck was make it both traditional and original, which he indicates can be an artistic challenge to depict traditional truths in a fresh style. The pip cards of this deck remind me of a Marseille-styled deck, featuring the number of suit symbols that correspond to the number of that card. I think I would have loved seeing full-color scenes like the Majors portray, but the deck is still beautiful nevertheless.
The Major Arcana cards of the Renaissance Tarot are associated with Greco-Roman deities or heroes which are presented in the upper corners of the arches, accompanies by an animal sacred to them. For example, there are Zeus and Hera for the Emperor and Empress, Aphrodite and Ares for the Lovers and Chariot, and Artemis and Apollo for the Moon and Sun.
The numbered suit cards illustrate the stages of a story in Greek Mythology. The story progresses through the cards from Ace to Ten. The stories are: Achilles (Swords), Eros and Psyche (Cups), Demeter and Persephone (Coins), and Hercules (Staves). The court cards are associated with four powerful Italian cities during the Renaissance period -- Milan (Swords), Venice (Cups), Rome (Coins), and Florence (Staves). The court cards also represent a connected design of planets, constellation, seasons, or archangels in this era's cosmology.
The 197-page paperback book that comes with this Tarot set is very informative to discuss Brian William's work and the story behind the creation of his cards. Although much care and research went into this production, including the study of elaborate costumes and designs, the author also indicates that he does not claim to be portraying historical accuracy with perfection. It seems though that this is a favored deck by collectors and readers due to the accuracy of the era which is portrayed in the cards.
The cardstock upon which the deck was created is a bit on the flimsy side, and thus, the cards are very flexible -- which does render very smooth and easy shuffling. If this is a deck for which you would use frequently, extra special care should be given in the shuffling and handling of the cards to ensure the life of the deck to be as long-lasting as possible.
The backs of the cards are not actually reversible, but can still be used for reversed cards in a reading if you are a reader who likes to incorporate the added dimensions that card reversals can offer to a reading. Reversed meanings are also included in the accompanying paperback book as well as in the 39-page LWB (little white booklet) that comes with the cards. The back is a tan colored, circular weaving that features a male and female in the center with elements of the four suits (cup, wand, sword, and coin) also surrounding the couple. You would actually have to pay a lot of attention to the orientation of the back side of the cards to see if they are going to be upright or inverted. This probably has more bearing for the reader who lays out all the cards in a reading face down before turning them over. I don't lay out the cards in that manner -- I put them all out face up -- and thus, the back design of a Tarot deck is not all that important to me personally.
Velvet
Angel
Email
Velvet Angel
Number of Cards in Deck: 78
Size of Cards: 2.75" x 4.95"
Included with deck: A 197-page, 7" x 10" companion book comes with the boxed set. Also a 39-page little white booklet.
Major Arcana:
Fool, Magician, Priestess,
Empress, Emperor, Hierophant, Lovers, Chariot, Strength (Card 11),
Hermit, Chance, Justice
(Card 8), Hanged Man, Death, Temperance, Devil, Tower, Stars, Moon,
Sun, Angel, World
Suit Names: Staves (Wands), Cups, Swords, Coins (Pentacles)
Court Cards: King, Queen, Knight, Page
Back Design of Cards: 
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 RENAISSANCE
TAROT
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