Tarocchi Romantici
by Giorgio Trevisan
 
This 22-card Major Arcana art deck was produced a number of years ago by LoScarabeo.  It was one I saw in the US Games catalog back about seven years or so ago, when USG was still distributing art decks.  They no longer distribute most of the LoScarabeo line, which has made these decks very hard to come by.  This deck is no longer available except on the secondary market.  It is well worth every effort made to hunt one down.  The artist, Giorgio Trevisan, is the same fellow who did the marvelous Tarots of the Renaissance, so you may recognize his style.  I believe it is his wife, Elisabetta Trevisan, who has done the Crystal Tarots, so lots of talent in the family.
 
The deck comes packaged in a lovely box printed on textured card stock, with a plastic slide-out tray inside which holds the cards.  A thick booklet comes with the cards, printed only in Italian and illustrated with black-and-white pictures of historical tarot cards.  This booklet's main focus seems to be on the history of tarot cards and the development of their imagery over time, although meanings of the cards are given with a spread for their use.  It is certainly a substantial booklet in its own right, but you need to be able to read Italian to use it.
 
The cards are likewise titled only in Italian, but anyone who is familiar with many decks will easily recognize the titles since most follow the standard tradition of names and order.  Justice is 8 and Strength 11.  Titles are as follows:
 
0 -- Il Matto (The Fool)
1 -- Il Bagatto (The Magician)
2 -- La Sacerdotessa (The Popess)
3 -- L'Imperatrice (The Empress)
4 -- L'Imperatore (The Emperor)
5 -- Il Sacerdote (The Pope)
6 -- Gli Amanti (The Lovers)
7 -- Il Carro (The Chariot)
8 -- La Giustizia (Justice)
9 -- L'Eremita (The Hermit)
10 -- La Ruota (The Wheel)
11 -- La Forza (Strength)
12 -- L'Appeso (The Hanged Man)
13 -- La Morte (Death)
14 -- La Temperanza (Temperance)
15 -- Il Diavolo (The Devil)
16 -- La Torre (The Tower)
17 -- L'Astro (The Stars)
18 -- La Luna (The Moon)
19 -- Il Sole (The Sun)
20 -- Il Giudizio Finale (Final Judgement)
21 -- Il Mondo (The World)
 
Please note that the titles in parentheses are not translations specifically of the title before them in Italian but rather just a rough correspondence to traditional titles so you can compare them.
 
The cards themselves are the typical LoScarabeo size, which is slightly smaller and narrower than standard American decks.  They have a somewhat silky feel to the heavy but cool card stock used.  Ironically, they would probably hold up well to years of use, yet they're so pretty you'd never want to abuse them.  The card back is a lovely light blue classical pattern which reverses.  Since there are only 22 cards in the deck, they shuffle easily.  There are no suits or courts.
 
This is one of the loveliest tarot decks I've ever seen. Soft and yes, romantic, the images will captivate any imagination and will make an excellent addition to any collection, so I highly recommend it if you ever come across a copy.  Since it is out of print, you have a hunt on your hands if you like this, but again, it is well worth the chase.
 
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Review Copyright 1999 by Gina M. Pace
 
Tarocchi Romantici by Giorgio Trevisan, 1991
published by LoScarabeo, Torino, Italy