Tarocchi Universali
by Sergio Toppi
 
Not to be confused with the Universal Tarot by Maxwell Miller, or even with the Universal Tarots by Roberto DeAngelis which is also published by LoScarabeo, this 22-car Major Arcana art deck is a treat for the eyes.  Sergio Toppi is the creator of the Tarots of the Origins, which is also just a smashing art collectible.  I have tremendous regard for the artistic abilities of this painter.
 
The deck comes housed in a small cardboard box with a little plastic tray inside to hold the cards and the little white booklet, which in this case is a substantial 80-page glue-bound book.  Of course, the book is entirely in Italian, but it has a history of the divination decks in tarot with lots of pictures so even if you can't read the book you can still enjoy looking through it.
 
The cards themselves are printed on the heavy card stock that previous LoScarabeo decks commonly come on.  A dedication-type card with a quote or poem in Italian accompanies the deck.  The cards handle easily because they are smaller than standard size by a little, and the fact that there are only 22 cards also helps.  Not that you would want to shuffle and deal an art collectible deck, but if you wanted to, you could.
 
Titles on the cards are in Italian and are in the top border over the image.  The titles are on the left and the number of the card is in Arabic numerals on the right.  Traditional titles and ordering are used here.  Justice is 8 and Strength 11.  Many interesting takes on the traditional symbolism occur.  The Emperor's head is fitted onto the end of a rapier as a pommel.  The Hermit is shown to be the rock upon which a tree grows.  The Devil looks like someone I should know!
 
Few artists are as gifted with the talent to show character faces with such interest.  Toppi's strength seems to be in lined and wrinkled faces.  It isn't often you see such faces as well-done and just plain fascinating as these cards depict.  The back design is a picture of a raven or crow that Toppi shows sitting on the Magician's head; the raven has been highlighted to use on the back of the cards.  If you liked the Tarots of the Origins, you will like this deck as well.
 
I highly recommend this deck to any tarot art collector, but it isn't the type of deck you would use to actually read with.  Personally I happen to love the art decks.  I think even though you can't read specifically with them, that there is a lot to be learned from looking at different artists' interpretations of tarot symbolism.  This deck is increasingly hard to find as it is no longer distributed in the United States, but that doesn't mean there aren't copies here and there.  If you should happen across one, I'd recommend picking it up!
 
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also by Sergio Toppi:
Tarots of the Origins
 
Review Copyright 1999 by Gina M. Pace
 
Tarocchi Universali by Sergio Toppi, 1991
published by Lo Scarabeo