DECK REVIEW FOR WIZARDS TAROT BY BARBARA MOORE
DECK REVIEW WIZARDS TAROT by BARBARA MOORE
Book by Barbara Moore Illustrated by Mieke Janssens
ISBN 9780738760285
This deck is 78 cards of wizard theme based on Rider Waite. The cards come in a hard-bound magnetic closure box with a well and ribbon to hold them and the accompanying 235 page book. The cards are 2 ¾ x 4 ¾ inches and backs have a non-reversible dragon. The artwork is beautifully photo shopped. The stock is glossy and easy to shuffle. All the card titles are at the bottom.
The book is an absolute treasure. It has full color, full page cards illustrated beside the explanations so you don’t have to flip throughout the book to look up individual cards. 6 or more key words are given plus reversed meanings. Detailed paragraphs explain the cards meanings and “advice” explains the symbols in each card unique to this deck and what they represent. The book is set up by grouping the cards by their numbers so you can see the similarities and differences within each suite.
The court cards are grouped by pages together, same for knights, queens, and kings. Moore says about young people of the courts, “A young person on a card is anyone who “feels” young or inexperienced in that situation, not necessarily that they are young.” There are six spreads of which “True Magic”, a 9 card spread, is unique to the deck. Moore explains what wizards are and how they relate to the tarot. One thing to love about the book is a Cheat Sheet for a Tarot Reading.
Major arcana card descriptions are: The Magician’s tools are the same as a Rider Waite but are floating in the air around him instead of being on the table. High Priestess is standing and doesn’t have a scroll or crescent moon, but her dress turns into water. Empress has a pointed wizard hat and is not shown as pregnant. Lovers are between two pillars with a pentacle overhead instead of an angel. Chariot is driven by two dragons. Strength is a dragon instead of a lion. The Wheel of Fortune is a spinning neutron with a pentagram in the center and ABRACADABRA spinning around it. Justice has no person in it. In the Devil card, the persons aren’t chained. Temperance pours and creates a beautiful lemniscate. The Moon accentuates a huge lobster between two giant pillar towers. World is clothed and surrounded by a sylph, nymph, salamander, and gnome.
In the minor arcana, 2 of Wands has two ships with no wands but a man is contemplating a book. In the 3 of Swords, three swords are stabbed through a pointed wizard hat. Most outstanding and with a non-Rider Waite image is the 5 of Swords. A man is tied to a tree with one of the swords in the ground beside him and a woman has been separated from him and lies on the ground as if dead with another sword beside her. A villanous man with the remaining three swords tips his hat. A unique rendition of 6 of Swords shows a woman and child in a side car with a man riding a motorcycle having swords in the air in their path. They are surrounded in a globe of sparkling, protective light. 10 of Pentacles has a huge tree that the book describes as its roots being your inheritance, its trunk being the life you’ve created and branches being plans for your future legacy.
Court cards: The suites are such that Page of Cups is a woman in a river, Page of Wands is a young man in the desert, Page of Swords is on a mountain, and Page of Pentacles is in a flowering field. Queen of wands wears a red dress, sits on a cushioned throne, has a black cat, and holds a sunflower in her hand. Queen of Cups’ throne is in the water and a turtle swims beside it. Queen of Pentacles has a wooden throne and a rabbit nearby. King of Swords is in a library, and King of Pentacles is in the woods with a stone pathway beside him and an open gate on the other side.
If you love magic, whether a beginner or professional reader, you will want this deck in your collection. The wizards come to life in vibrant colors. This is a modern fantasy themed deck. Its author was influenced by fantasy literature, tv series and movies. This deck is a must have and could be your first deck or your next of many to add to your collection.
