Historical Cards

Tarot decks set in an unusual historical period or era, such as Victorian England or Etruscan Italy.

A Passage in Time Tarot A Passage in Time Tarot aligns historical personalities with the major arcana, and historical periods - Renaissance, Medieval, Byzantine and Roman - with the four minor arcana suits. The deck is as yet unpublished on paper, but is available on an interactive DVD.

Ancient Italian Tarot The Ancient Italian Tarot shows artwork in a medieval Italian style. The card scenes are of a similar style as the 1JJ Swiss Tarot but with more detail and muted colour. Card titling is small and in Italian only.

Babylonian Tarot The Babylonian Tarot is a unique deck based on the cosmology and legends of the Ancient Sumerians, Mesopotamians and Babylonians, who lived more than 4000 years ago. There are 83 cards in this occult deck, including an extra major arcana card titled Genesis and another court card in each suit.

Da Vinci Enigma Tarot The Da Vinci Enigma Tarot uses drawings and illustrations from Renaissance man, inventor, and artist, Leonardo da Vinci. His sketches have been matched with the Tarot archetypes to create a deck with some depth. The suits are elemental—Fire, Earth, Air and Water—and some of the major arcana cards have been renamed to better fit Leonardo's theme.

Eclectic Bronze Age Tarot The Eclectic of Bronze Age Tarot is a deck in progress by Russian computer artist, Vladimir Strannikov. It's a collage of bronze statues and sculpture set on a metallic coloured background.

Etruscan Tarot The Etruscan Tarot is a historically-themed art deck, based on the culture, civilisation, and mystical beliefs of the ancient Etruscans, a pre-Roman tribe who lived in what is now modern day Italy.

Golden Tarot of the Renaissance The Golden Tarot of the Renaissance is based on the fifteenth-century French deck, the Charles VI (also known as the Estensi) of which only 17 cards remain. Lo Scarabeo's full set of 78 cards have been created in attractive watercolours and finished with a gold leaf background.

Imperatrix Tarot Developed to accompany the Orphalese Tarot software, the Imperatrix Tarot is a variation on the Tarot of Marseilles, with sharper lines and eye-catching, contrasting colours.

Light of the Goddess Tarot The Light of the Goddess Tarot (previously the LuminaDivinae ArTarot) follows the Tarot of Marseilles structure, but with illustrated minor arcana. The 78 cards feature selections of art from the great masters, from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, which are not collaged. Now self-published in a deluxe card and book set.

Oswald Wirth Tarot The Oswald Wirth Tarot is a deck of 78 cards, based on the 22 majors created in 1889 by Swiss occultist, Oswald Wirth. It has a Marseilles foundation, with some changes based on the ideas of Eliphas Levi. The card art is illustrated in primary colours on a gold metallic background.

Royal Britain Tarot The Royal Britain Tarot is an educational tarot deck based on the characters and activities of the monarchy of Great Britain from the Dark Ages to the present day. The completed deck is due to be published in early 2010.

Tarocco Balocco The Tarocco Balocco: Le Carte di Giacomo is literally a Tarot of Toys, and features old-fashioned playthings - porcelain dolls, tin sand-pit buckets, wind-up toys and more, associated with the major arcana archetypes.

Tarot de la Revolution The Tarot de la Revolution is coloured in red, white and blue and has basic artwork iillustrating the theme of the French revolution. The majors and courts are roughly matched with historical figures and scenes, while the minors have similarities to playing cards.

Tarot Lenormand The Tarot Lenormand is the first 78-card deck based on the Mlle Lenormand oracles that were printed in the 19th century. The deck continues the Lenormand feel artistically, and has pleasant scenes of daily life and experience with a country French look.

Venetian Historical Tarot The Venetian Historical Tarot is a majors-only Italian Tarot set, with detailed and fanciful images on its rectangular cards; illustrations of the city of Venice in the Renaissance and later times.

Victoria Regina Tarot Made from a collage of Victorian era steel engravings of late nineteenth century figures and settings, these black and white cards in the Victoria Regina Tarot are complicated and fascinating.

Victorian Romantic Tarot The Victorian Romantic Tarot is based on original engravings from 19th century artists, perfectly collaged to create fully-illustrated, Rider-Waite-based Tarot scenes. It's available for order in gold and standard editions.