Manuscript of Initiation Tarot Deck 78+2 Extra Cards

I love this deck! The images and designs are enchanting and intriguing.

This has been my favorite tarot deck of the last year. I liked it so much, I bought 4 copies to share with friends. The cards have a comfortable tactile feel, the cardstock is good, and the size is perfect for me to work with easily. The back designs are some of the most beautiful I've ever seen. And while the imagery might not be easy for beginners to work with, those with backgrounds in tarot systems shouldn't have any trouble. The cards are, I would say, pip images supplemented by spot illustrations all culled from various medieval manuscript sources featuring odd and decorative marginalia images from ancient texts-gardens, lords and ladies, and peculiar half-beasts and mythical monsters. They are on ivory or parchment colored backgrounds making them feel like pages from old scrolls. I wouldn't say the cards are scenic, but they do have scenes on them, and if you know your ranks and suits, you can manage with the labels using the illustrations for extra layers of intuitive interpretation. These cards feel like something from sacred mystery sources long hidden in the past, owing to the origins of the earliest tarot cards.

I've had a library of tarot since 1974 and this one is special to me. We've used it in our weekly readings on YouTube (Moonstar Lodge). I look forward to buying more from this seller.

I love the mystique of this deck. If you want readily quick and easy reads, maybe it's not for you. Some will complain that the images are too small or unreadable, or unknowable, but isn't that where the tarot came from? Unknowable mysteries privy to the gifted few? I mightn't have been able to read with this deck five years ago as it is a pip deck featuring marginalia border illustrations from various medieval manuscripts. And it's on an ivory parchment colored background, giving the whole thing a mysteriously special antique feel. It really feels like a secret peek into ancient mysteries schools that we're shhhhhh! not supposed to know about. I would say you need to know your tarot system in order to read with it by the suit and rank designations. The decorative illustrations may not be adequate for intuitive readings, but add a layer of intrigue. As with oracle decks, the illustrations may or may not inspire ideas within you. This deck may not work for everyone, but for me, it's a treasure I'm growing to love it more and more each day. The card backs are some of the most beautiful I've ever seen (on this 3rd ed. of the deck). I rarely buy back-up copies of decks, for this one I did, and am considering buying a few more to possibly gift. The price is unbeatable. I tend to read these by translating in my head to the RWS system. Others might read it using the numerology and element designations of the tarot de marseilles. Or perhaps you have your own methods. I use the imagery simply as a layer of atmosphere, mystery, history. And the images of strange human/animal combinations are reminiscent of details in old paintings by Hieronymus Bosch-images to scare, warn, teach or laugh at. I can't say enough about this deck, but I don't want to mislead you if you're wanting an easy deck (it comes with a guidebook) but if you want easy, I'd recommend an RWS or something with a lengthy compendium of explanation. This is my current top deck, for the foreseeable future.