Product Description

The serene Universal Waite Tarot is perfect for meditation and readings. The deck is a soothing, eye-appealing complement to the traditional Rider-Waite deck. The drawings of Pamela Colman Smith have been beautifully recolored by Mary Hanson-Roberts.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #106865 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Cards
• 78 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781572815612
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

Softer colours, not so harsh
I've read for nearly 30 years and I've never liked the original Rider Waite deck. To me reading them was like trying to absorb road directions from an incoherent person who was hitting you over the head with a board -- the information got lost in the unpleasantness of the experience. I did not like the way the figures were outlined in black, the colours looked too primary and unrealistic and I found the human figures devoid of personality.

I find the Universal Waite deck truly beautiful. The colours are softer and more natural; the outlines are gone or considerably toned down, giving the deck a more human feel. The characters actually have expressions. For the first time I have been able to look at the cards to notice certain details, like the fact that the chained woman in The Devil has a bunch of grapes for a tail, or that the Magician is wearing a snake for a belt. Reading with this deck is a pleasure; the cards really let you in.

I've heard a number of people complain that Hanson-Roberts changed details in the original deck and that that ruined it for them. I guess I see it more as, Hanson-Roberts' focus was different and it's a focus I prefer. I think she did a service to a deck that (in my experience) was becoming far less popular with new readers, due to the amazing number and variety of decks that are now available.

If the original Rider Waite deck works for you, you will probably have some difficulties with the Universal Waite. If it doesn't, but you would like to add a more traditional deck to your toolkit, the Universal Waite may be the deck you're looking for.

An attractive alternative to the Rider-Waite
Mary Hanson-Robert's coloring of the famous Waite-Smith images provides a more soothing and eye-pleasing alternative to the often drab colors of the popular Rider-Waite version. Some may find these colors too soft, but I find this deck quite striking, and you don't have to give up the intuitive and easy to read images of the Waite-Smith system. Great for beginners -- skip the Rider-Waite and grab this deck when you want to learn Tarot.

Missing Symbols
I have used the Rider-Waite deck for more than 20 years and am very drawn to the symbology that fill these cards.

I have the Hanson/Roberts deck and love the artwork and was excited when I first found that she had colored the Rider-Waite deck.

This is a beautiful deck... a little overcolored in some cards...drawing one's eye into areas that neither the original artist or author intended, but that's not bad either...

Only, I wish she'd paid more attention to detail..sometimes my eyes fell to the Hebrew letters above the triangle on the Temperance card and that meant something in that reading... these are now replaced with fabric folds in the new version. Sometimes in the Kt. of Swords... the eyes of the horse appearing to be looking back at the knight gave the thought that maybe this 'knight' I'm reading for is moving faster than they can see where they are going... but this newly colored knight's horse is looking very straight ahead. This is only a couple of many, many symbols that were missed or left out, whether to lack of research and study or deliberate, I couldn't use this deck for that reason, so just one for the collection.