Buying in Italy

I'll be going to Rome, villages in Tuscany, Venice, and Florence at the end of April. Also Vienna, Prague, and Amsterdam.

Reading threads on here it appears that the ideal place to buy in Italy is in tobacco shops, instead of looking for a New Age store or something similar. It sounds like the decks are sold as novelties alongside cigars.

What should I know about buying in Italy? Are there certain decks that aren't available on the North American market that I can find there? I'm sure I can expect to find Italian-first versions of a lot of Lo Scarabeo decks, but I'm wondering if there are rarer decks that don't often leave Europe? I only anticipate buying one, so your best recommendations!

I already own the Tarocco Soprafino and Tarocco delle Vetrate.

About how many Euros can I expect to pay on average so I don't get swindled into inflated prices?

All hints and tips are welcome!

I reckon you might find the sort of double-ended Piedmontese decks for gaming (see attachment below). Pip cards for playing with. Modiano do quite a few regional Italian decks too which are worth looking out for.

I also know that Modiano and other publishers do reproductions of standard playing card decks that are beautiful. Like the Tarocchi di Alan. There are some lovely playing card decks from Trieste etc.

Of course there are bound to be all the LoS decks and - if you're lucky - Meneghello.

Check out small bookstores, tobacconists, stationers, 2nd hand bookstores. Prices for decks here in Europe range from maybe 10-15 euros for a nice reproduction playing card / tarocchi deck (I bought the Tarocchi di Alan above for 17 euros I think in a stationers) and maybe actual tarot decks cost about 20-30 euros depending on the mark up. When I see LoS decks here they range from 18-30 euros. I don't buy them if they're 30 euros but I have picked up LoS decks for 20 euros before, some OOP ones too.

Also check out the flea markets; everytime I go to a flea market anywhere in Europe I find DECKS (the deck attached here was found for 8 euros along with another. Yes, 8 euros for two!)

The first thing I think of when I hear Italy is Il Meneghello, beautiful historical reproductions of tarots can be found there and you don't have to pay for shipping, since you going to be in Italy!! A Meneghello usually cost $80+ on ebay but since you'll be there you'll get store prices which are considerable lower. They are found in Milano, Italy. And just in case you haven't heard of Il Meneghello here is their website:

http://www.arnellart.com/osvaldo/frm-tarot.htm

I have three decks from them, trust me you won't regret it!!

But you know, it's funny, everytime I have seen a Meneghello deck for sale in a shop here they have been prohibitively expensive. (Admittedly it isn't Italy, maybe in Italy it's different) Decks you can get for 30 euros on alida plus shipping can sell for 100 euros or more in a shop. I came across a copy of the Meneghello Corte del Tarocchi (?) the other day for a song. It had been listed in the shop at almost 100 euros but was reduced to 50. That was cheap so I bought it but generally Meneghello decks are expensive when seen in shops. I tend to think they must be hoping that nobody has heard of alida.

How much is shipping to Canada from alida? If it is less that 70 euros which I'm sure it is (however many dollars that is) then it may still be worth buying from alida.

I bet Rome has some good shops. Maybe Florence is a bit too touristy for tarot shops...

Sadly I won't be going to Milano, which I hear is the Mecca of Tarot. The cities listed are the only places I'll be able to look.

Aeric said:

Sadly I won't be going to Milano, which I hear is the Mecca of Tarot. The cities listed are the only places I'll be able to look.

Click to expand...

Oh really? My partner is going to Milan next week. Anyone know of any addresses I can direct him to?? (Not wanting to hijack your thread but you did title it Buying in Italy!

A friend told me Milan is the "most superstitious" part of Italy, still clinging to a lot of non-Catholic beliefs. More Tarot readers are found there than anywhere in the country, so I imagine the deck business is booming.

Those Piedmontese decks are GORGEOUS! I've never used double-ended pips before, maybe I should look into it. The Hanged Man makes me giggle!

I'm kicking this back up because I leave for Italy on Saturday. Some last minute questions:

While I plan to pick up a lovely pack of playing cards, the fortunetelling Tarot decks are ones I'm after. How popular are "themed" decks in Italy? I'd rather not pick up any Lo Scarabeo deck I can just order here as luggage space and funds are limited. One deck of playing cards, one Tarot deck, maybe two if I'm really salivating.

Is there a way to vocally distinguish between playing card decks, and decks used for fortunetelling? If I use the word "cartomanzia" will I just get blank stares and directed to the playing cards, or will most store owners know what I mean?

Since I'm not going to Milan, are Meneghello decks ubiquitous in Italy or am I out of luck? If I drop the name, would most bookstore owners recognize that I'm a person of discerning taste, or is it not well known outside Milan?

I don't know about how well known Meneghello decks are throughout Italy but if you talk about cartomanzia they'd know you're not just after playing cards, but more fortune-telling stuff.

Not just Milan, but also Bologna!

I agree with the advice everyone has given it. You can usually find them in tobacco shops and esoteric shops. The best way to find them is probably get out from the touristic areas and more into areas where locals might actually shop. Some book shops might have them too, as well as stationery shops. In Florence, there are LOTS of stationery shops. The ones that have "antique"/artisanal looking products (I think most of them in the centre are like that) sometimes have nice decks. You might have to shop around a bit, since some of them are a bit more expensive than others.

There are also some similar stationery shops that are on the limits of tourist areas or right outside of them, so that they're still in the historical parts of the city but not in places full of visitors willing to buy anything at any price. Those tend to have interesting things, and sometimes decks as well. Plus, they're great for post cards.

There was a large book store called Edison that had lots of Art books, including some Tarot ones, but as far as I know they were shut down last Autumn by La Feltrinelli, a chain of book stores. Still, it's worth going there if it's still around -- I heard they were trying to keep it open -- but don't get your hopes up.

Finally, I would expect to pay between 15-30 euros depending on the deck, although maybe more if it's exceptionally good or a smaller edition.

I hope this helps. I can PM you some more advice if you want.