Tarot de Marseille Deck

The Tarot de Marseille Review

The Tarot de Marseille deck is very well-known and was originally published in 1709 by Pierre Madenié in France. It’s considered to be one of the oldest decks and this is a lush, sharp, well-presented recreation of them. This is a deck that most people would consider to be medium sized to large; the cards are nearly 5 x 3 inches.

This is the second deck that I worked with as I began to learn tarot a few decades back. I had to learn the Tarot more thoroughly because of the lack of visual clues. I wanted to read for others in person, and I did not want to be thumbing through the “Little White Book” trying to remind myself what the four of cups was all about. So I had to memorize the cards themselves with no pictorial cues. This approach has served me well.

There is no real reason why someone couldn’t learn tarot only from the Marseilles deck, particularly a determined newcomer who has a strong ability for memorization. This deck evokes the mystery of tarot quite effectively, even for experienced or professional readers like me. If you had a tarot reading done by a gypsy in Romania in 1830, she probably would have been using this deck.

The modern user should not look for perfection here, however. The printer has deliberately retained some bleed through in some of the images. These were in the original decks sold by Madenié and many are charmed by that. People who favor slick, pin sharp graphics are going to get something quite different. This is not a remastering but instead is a reproduction, a reprint. It’s got old-world charm by the bagful.

Overall

If you are serious about the Tarot, then the Tarot de Marseille is one that you should have on hand, even if you don’t read from it frequently. Suitable for both the advanced beginner and experienced tarot reader this deck will stretch your intuitive abilities.  It will make you a better reader because the usual visual clues on many decks are just not there. You will have to learn to trust yourself and your intuition. Highly recommended, all in all.

Update: This deck is now only available from third party sellers on Amazon at absurdly high price that cannot be recommended.

Tarot de Marseilles Deck – Review by Deborah (Admin)

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