Hoi Polloi Tarot

Details of the Hoi Polloi Tarot

Solandia's Summary: What is known as the Hoi Polloi Tarot is a Rider-Waite Tarot clone from 1973 intended for games and finding out about yourself and the future. The deck has been redrawn psychedelic colours and is without some background and finer details, but sticks closely to the original images. Also the last RWS clone published before U.S. Games began enforcing their copyright.

Type: Tarot Deck   Number of Cards: 78    Major Arcana: 22    Minor Arcana: 56

Card Size: 0.98 x 1.67 inches = 2.50cm x 4.25cm

Publisher: Published by Hoi Polloi Inc 1972

Deck Tradition: Rider-Waite-Smith

Minor Arcana Style: RWS-Based Scenes

Suits: Cups, Swords, Wands, Pentacles

Court Cards: Page, Knight, Queen, King

Major Titles: The Fool, The Magician, The High Priestess, The Empress, The Emperor, The Hierophant, The Lovers, The Chariot, Justice, The Hermit, Wheel of Fortune, Strength, The Hanged Man, Death, Temperance, The Devil, The Tower, The Star, The Moon, The Sun, Judgement, The World

The Fool is Not numbered   Strength is 11   Justice is 8

Deck Characteristics: Decks of the 70s

Deck Themes: Rider-Waite Clones

Card Back: Non-reversible

Back Design: golden ochre color with drawn skeleton key, white edge beyond a two-lined black border.

Languages: English

Excerpt of the Hoi Polloi Tarot review by Lynda Cowles: The year is 1972; the place, New York City. And as the giant of the tarot world we now know as US Games is busy trying to obtain copyright for the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) tarot, one small, independent company is releasing its own version of the deck. Named simply “The Tarot”, it is the last commercially-produced tarot to use Pamela Colman-Smith’s drawings before US Games becomes the only company l... read more.

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