This deck claims to be the first deck to be completely Spanish in origin and symbolism. It is another of the classic styled decks, with woodcuts as the apparent source of artistic inspiration. However, a lot of the symbolism itself is vastly different from the traditional, in many cases to the better.
For example, I really was impressed with the personification of Justice as King Solomon, as he holds a baby up with a sword in his hand. The story of how King Solomon resolved the fight between two women over the infant they both claimed is an inspiring and thought-provoking one.
The Consultant, or Magician, appears to be illustrated with chakra points painted on his body. The deck is rife with small bits of additional knowledge such as this and I think someone could literally discover new and meaninful insights with this deck for years to come.
The cards are slightly smaller than standard and shuffle comfortably and easily. The Minor Arcana do not have any titles at all on any of the cards, not even the court cards, which is different in and of itself. The suits appear to be the traditional ones (Cups, Swords, Rods, Coins) but since they are unnamed you can call them pretty much anything you like.
The Roman numerals are done in the old way, as opposed to the subtractive form, in this deck also. And some of the figures in the deck are just plain weird. The court cards are illustrated, but the numbered cards are simple renderings of the number of items in the suit. There are planetary and astrological symbols and Hebrew letters on each of the cards.
The deck comes supplied with two booklets, one in Spanish and one in English. The booklet tells the biography of Maritxu Guler and then the rest of the booklet is about the meanings of the cards. I don't feel very much explanation of the details is given, leaving the reader to discover the correspondences on his or her own.
While I don't like the
woodcut-style of the art itself, I do feel the symbolic nature of the deck
makes up for it. This is definitely the best of the classic styled decks
I have reviewed thus far.
It should be noted that
this deck has gone out-of-print, so if you like what you see here, and
you have an opportunity to pick one up somewhere, you should certainly
get it right away. Once they are gone, they are gone for good.
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Review Copyright 1998 by Gina M. Pace