The Original Rider Waite Tarot Deck: 78 beautifully illustrated cards and instructional booklet

Gift from my daughter who chose them because they are the original tarot images. Great pack for a first deck. Good size, sturdy quality and great images. If I could make one suggestion it would be that the reverse of the cards were more aged and in keeping with the tarot images but that’s just personal preference.

The best deck…no comparison.

Well, not much to add to the other reviews. This is simply the Original Rider Waite Tarot Deck. The 78-card deck is now almost certainly the most widely used in the world, and it remains as popular as ever. While the images are basic and simple (drawing is almost crude in some places), the details and backgrounds hold a wealth of symbolism (almost occult like, full of mystical meanings). I can almost agree with some people who are saying that those basic pictures and symbols make connection with one's subconscious mind.Personally I like that - the more basic cards, the better. The colours are not very bright and lively but then again, those cards are not just about lovely colours and I would say that this deck is also a good starting point for somebody like me - almost a complete beginner (the other set I have is from "Easy Tarot" by Josephine Ellershaw - which is also quite good as a starting point).But bear in mind that all of this is very personal and not very objective - as everybody has different preferences here, and searching for a perfect tarot deck could actually take long time in some cases. And as the Josephine Ellershaw was saying in her book, "your cards should provoke an instant inner response, regardless whether you understand it". And I think the Original Rider Waite Tarot Deck is doing exactly that (for me) - something is there in those cards, you don't exactly know what is it and you can really verbalise it, but the "feeling" is there for sure.About cards: The size of the cards: 12cm by 7cm (4.7" by 2.5"). I agree with some other reviews that the cards look slightly smudged and are very dark coloured - but this is not a negative point for me and doesn't bother me that much (it maybe for you though). The plus side is that the cards are actually quite thick and should last a long time. In my opinion this is a good buy for anybody interested in Tarot.Recommended books:-"Power Tarot: More Than 100 Spreads That Give Specific Answers to Your Most Important Questions" by T. J MacGregor

Very good reproduction of the original designs, lots of other decks are a bit smudged. Not this one, clear images and the paper is nice and weighty too.

If you’re new to tarot then this is the best deck to start with. The pictures are heaped with meaningful imagery, a lot of which provides really useful context when learning tarot and is often lost in other decks.As for this specific deck itself, the print misses a few of the original colours and details out of some of the more intricate pictures. Not a big deal but I’m sure there are better prints out there. The deck itself is good, sturdy and works well for me.

This set was originally published in 1910 when offset lithography was the trend the day, thus these are designed to fit with that printing technique, hence they are basic, using large swathes of colour ‘blocks’ much like Toulouse Lautrec posters. Most of the designs are simplified versions of the stunning [and ridiculously expensive] Sola Busca Tarot and Tarot of Marseilles. The cards measure approximately 73mm x 123mm and are plastic coated and printed on stiff card so should last if you look after them.What fascinates me is the fact nobody has said that ‘original’ fortune telling cards had 52 cards and ’Tarot’ was actually a very complex card game that used the 78 cards [hence their numbering of the Major Arcana] to score points. In reality, the fortune telling came in because they looked prettier and had more cards so seemed more mystical, especially if you know the mythos that goes with cartomancy.The pack has a very small 30 page instruction manual that gives a brief description on the ’meaning’ of each card and an example on how they should be used. This pack is great for those who want to dabble, or are new to it as it’s all very simple with inoffensive interpretations and quite ‘tame’ cards as Waite had it all toned down for Edwardian sensibilities [unlike my Grand Ettellia which has four really ’bad’ cards other than death!! -which by the way simply means the ending of something] and wanted something ‘arty’.The problem with this set is that the cards ARE badly reproduced [the printing is fine] having lost much of their colour to a muddy blandness due to overuse of cyan in the printing process, but it is cheap. If it’s a first set you want this is a good starter choice or checkout the Tarot of Marseilles which is more wood-carving in style. Seasoned uses may prefer something more weighty [forgive the pun] but it’s all down to how you interpret your pack and how they draw you in –you don’t know until you’ve used them and if you’re ‘in tune’ with your pack you’ll soon develop your own interpretations rather than the bland supplied ones or drivel found in most books, but I found this pack easy to gain control of [again experienced uses should understand the comment], just make sure they don’t control you!

I really love the fact that it's made in Italy (not shown in the product details)

This is perfection . There should be a card for it !