Morning!

I noticed the Mythic Tarot on my bookshelf this morning. I don’t think I’ve opened it since it arrived, oh about 11 years ago. It’s one of my many overlooked decks, so it’s good to give it an outing. The cards feel nice; they have a lightness about them. The imagery is very Rider-Waite-with-a-twist. For example, Justice, which appeared when I shuffled, cut and turned one card, is numbered eight in the accompanying book. Actually the Majors aren’t numbered, so you could allocate it any position in the deck you like.

I like the addition of the owl to Justice’s symbols – the scale and the sword. It reminds us that, while cool impartiality is an important skill, when weighing up a decision or a situation, it is also essential to use wisdom in order to reach a conclusion. For instance, it might be easy for you to see that a good friend is making a mistake. Using the influence of Justice, you might be tempted to ‘clarify things’ for her. However, with a little wisdom and common-sense, you will realise that she needs to come to her own understanding in her own time.

The Mythic Tarot is a pleasant deck, and I can see I need to bring it out into daylight more often. I do enjoy it when a deck creator takes the usual RWS symbolism and adds extras, which increase my understanding of a card. Of course, this deck is based upon Greek mythology, which I love, and which is timeless in its lessons and deep in its symbolism.

The colours in the original deck are pleasing and fairly muted. The art is a little static and the figures have a ‘posed’ appearance, but don’t let that put you off. There is, in fact, a new version of the deck with images by Giovanni Caselli. I haven’t got it, therefore am not able to compare the two. From the reviews, it seems you will either love it (probably if you don’t have the original) or hate it (some say the artwork is a little contrived and relies on digital enhancement).

If you have the opportunity to get hold of an original copy of this deck, then grab it… and don’t let it languish in your bookcase.

Buy the Mythic Tarot in the UK

Be aware that it is still possible to pick up a new copy of the Mythic Tarot at a reasonable price. There are some unscrupulous sellers out there trying to increase the price to an almost mythical level.

Text refers to The Mythic Tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke & Liz Greene, illustrated by Tricia Newell.