Two new additions to my Rider collection

Essence of Winter

I picked up a pocket edition made in Switzerland by A G Muller some time in the early nineties the other week. It's in excellent condition and the cards look brand new. I think it's a much better size than my miniature edition and being made in Switzerland, the card material is among the best. I paid £9.99 for it.

My other new arrival is what must be a first edition Original Rider. It has a dark blue box with 'Temperance' on the front and was printed in Belgium. I paid £15 for it on Ebay and had a little bit more competition than I was anticipating - I could have hit 'buy it now' for £10 but didn't think it would go for as much as a brand new deck (normally around £10 on Ebay). The cards also look brand new, the box having a bit of wear.

The interesting thing about the Original is the difference in colouring between the Belgian and Chinese printing; compared to the Belgian print, the Chinese one looks as though a sepia filter has been applied and it is noticeably darker.

I'm really pleased with my new purchases and they go very nicely with the Belgian Giant Rider deck that I got not too long ago.