I got an email over the weekend about the Brother Owl Voronoi Tarot deck becoming available. I was glad to see this, because it is a beautiful deck, and very deceptively marked to boot. Although I have no involvement in this production (though I did have an advance copy on display at my ECSS booth a couple of years back) I know how much work Brother Owl put into bringing this project to market, and how nicely it turned out.

First of all, as I said, the cards are beautiful. They were scanned from an original deck produced in 1910, made before the commercial Tarot versions you may be familiar with. Other than cleaning up some printing issues from the original deck, Brother Owl did not alter or enhance the colors, which are gorgeous. They have a nice linen finish and are easy to handle. I typically do some kind of enhancement to pretty much every card deck I acquire, but I did not feel the need to do so with these.

The backs are the original crackle back style, and there is no way a sitter will ever, ever notice the ingenious marking system. I have my doubts that even magicians would catch this. I didn't when I first looked at them. Once you know the system though, they are pretty easy to read.

Finally, the box itself looks very cool. I need to mention that the version I have (from several years ago) did not feature the box, but from the photos I have seen it looks like something you would find at your local bookshop, very authentic. All in all, this set is very well done.

This is the link that came in the email, in case you want to see for yourself:

https://arcanesecrets.com/products/the-voronoi-tarot


Paul

Jumped at it. It might just be the dream-come-true deck for me.

I'm interested in this deck, but I'd like to see a picture of one of the minor arcana cards first. Do the minor arcana just show an assortment of chalices/pentacles/etc. that denote the number of the card? Or do the minor arcana show scenes that can be interpreted? If the minor arcana resemble the major arcana, then that's a good sign.

Also, are these cards "readers," or does the user have to count/interpret various marks to determine the value of the card?


Thanks,

Richard

The deck appears to be a facsimile of the 1910 RWS tarot. If so, the minor arcana should depict scenes instead of pips.

I have the same questions, Richard.

These were indeed scanned from a 1910 RWS deck. So each minor arcana has a scene incorporating the number of pentacles, swords, cups and wands for that card, as well as a Roman numeral at the top so you can easily know the card number without actually counting the individual swords, etc.

After much cajoling, I managed to get my hands on a deck of these a little over a year ago. I thought to respond to the above question, but double-checked first to make sure the backs/marks were still the same concept as mine (lest I give inaccurate information). They are! So, I can give feedback having used this deck to read a fair amount before the pandemic hit, and sporadically since.

The cards are not readers. They are of the "count/interpret various marks to determine the value of the card" variety. Such cards usually make me groan--but these did not. I was able to pick up on the system almost instantly, and the positioning of the marks is well thought out, in a handy position, and not difficult to see. That last part is very important for me, as I'm no spring chicken (and, even then, my eyes are terrible for my age). It takes me 3 seconds to suss out a card from the marks, which I can do from a foot-and-a-half away. Although, to be frank, I usually just check to see what suit is coming (if a minor) and lead into it that way--not even bothering to check the number--which only takes a fraction of a second. Either way, with a reading, I've got all the time in the world to stare at the back of the upcoming card, as there's no rush/hurry.

If, like me, you do reversals, the marks are only in one corner as the deck is one-way. So, you'll know the orientation that's coming as well (and will have to look at the appropriate corner to tell what card is coming). If you don't do reversals, then this'll be moot to you, as your deck is likely always the same orientation.

For what it's worth, this deck cost me a heck of a lot more than is being asked now, and I am still very pleased with it. It's exactly what it says on the tin, and what I'd always hoped other antique reproductions would be, but was always let down by until this one. If my experience is any indication, just be prepared to have other readers ask you where you got them ("Hm? Oh, I don't know where they're from... they were my mothers and really resonated with me" is a line I've had to say more than I expected to).

Shipping was super quick, I have to say. I'm very happy with these cards. They certainly aren't readers, but as stated just above, the marking system is pretty easy to read when you have a few seconds, especially when differentiating between Majors and the various suits. Best used in a reading milieu to stay a bit ahead; but doing a tarot effect in which you need to glean the identity with a quick furtive glance would be more challenging for some.

And to answer an earlier question, it appears to be an older-style Waite deck with the classic Pamela Coleman Smith illustrations, before the pictures were cleaned up a bit. All the pip cards are the illustrated scenes and scenarios that we are used to and can certainly be interpreted--these are not the style with no dynamic scene in which you simply count the number of pentacles or wands.

Lovely, familiar, with a vintage charm and simple to learn marking; I can't imagine any sitter being suspicious of these at all, ever.

Seth

If anyone is looking for some marked tarot cards that *are* readers, the Ledger Tarot are available:

https://taylorimagineering.com/shop/ledger-tarot-deck/

(No, I have no connection with them other than owning a pack.) Unfortunately, the Ledger Tarot have pips to count for the minor arcana faces instead of pictures to interpret. So every deck you get from anywhere has its trade-offs.

I could use the Owl Tarot if it was offered in Major Tarot. I have no need for the Minor cards. Just a suggestion. And... I've just now seen that the Ledger Tarot offers a Major Arcana only option.