How old can you go? WS relic

ravenest

Decrepit decks

My deck is about 40 years old (Thoth). Soooo extensivly used. Given away used for ... returned to me. Been travelling, on camping trips, carted around in a back pack and motocycle panniers. Did years at a market stall. Also slack, often did readings without cloth, on the ground and all sorts of stuff. Never rubbed them on the table or sand paper or ....? ( :laugh: never thought of that .... thats the sort of thing we used to do to new motorcycle jackets).

They held up pretty good, some edges a bit fluffy, images faded, bits missing.

I have seen decks that got wet, that kids got into and frisbeed around the garden etc ... damage is a different look to genuine years long wear and tear from reading.

NOW ... who wants to bid on my deck! (Exotic ancient Tarot, worn from the usage of time and wizard's hands .... once owned by a witch and someone who knew someone who knew Crowley ! ) Make an offer! ;)
 

Inconnu

My deck is about 40 years old (Thoth). Soooo extensivly used. Given away used for ... returned to me. Been travelling, on camping trips, carted around in a back pack and motocycle panniers. Did years at a market stall. Also slack, often did readings without cloth, on the ground and all sorts of stuff. Never rubbed them on the table or sand paper or ....? ( :laugh: never thought of that .... thats the sort of thing we used to do to new motorcycle jackets).

They held up pretty good, some edges a bit fluffy, images faded, bits missing.

I have seen decks that got wet, that kids got into and frisbeed around the garden etc ... damage is a different look to genuine years long wear and tear from reading.

NOW ... who wants to bid on my deck! (Exotic ancient Tarot, worn from the usage of time and wizard's hands .... once owned by a witch and someone who knew someone who knew Crowley ! ) Make an offer! ;)

Much fun to read this. I love an old actually well used pack that's aged naturally.
 

Darkmage

My RWS looks a lot like the one in the photo. My mother gave it to me when I was a kid, and it got dragged through some elementary, junior high, high school, high school trips to Europe, college, work, etc. It's beaten up and dogeared and some of the ink has rubbed off.

It's now in a genteel retirement in a deerskin bag in my closet. Sell it? Never.
 

Ron521

Reminds me of motorcyclists who intentionally scuff up brand new leather jackets to give them more "street cred"...sometimes do similar stuff to their motorcycles, downgrading them to "ratbikes".
 

magpie9

I have an old batteredHloi Polloi that's much like LeFanu's deck. Battered beyond belief...some of the cards are torn, some even folded. Now and then I use it, shuffling very gently...it responds like an old firehorse, eager and grateful. I found it in a 2nd hand store years ago, all but falling apart from passionate use-- but all the cards are there. I purely love it.
 

Terrapin

I was on vacation in London last May and we were at a street fair somewhere in the East End I think. There was a guy with a Thoth and a Morgan Greer there reading for someone at his table and the Morgan Greer was the most worn deck I've ever seen. Not so much chipped, battered or scratched--just worn on the faces as if they'd all been rubbed in the same manner to the point where they were barely recognizable. Looked quite interesting, but somehow maufactured. I wanted to delicately inquire about it, but he was in the middle of a reading and my friends wanted to move on, so I didn't ask. Strange.
 

karen0205

What do the backs look like?
 

gregory

He says it is the standard Blue Box deck with plaid backs.

It is the standard Rider & Co so-called “British Blue Box” copyright free Rider-Waite Smith deck - the one that presumably had The World dancer on the cover of the now lost two part box. It could be late 1960s, but for someone who knew nothing about tarot, they could be forgiven for thinking it was over 100 years old. If I hadn’t seen the plaid backs, I think I would have reached the same conclusion.
 

firecatpickles

Reminds me of motorcyclists who intentionally scuff up brand new leather jackets to give them more "street cred"...sometimes do similar stuff to their motorcycles, downgrading them to "ratbikes".

What an excellent term to lend to this style of purposely scuffing and scarring tarot decks--"street cred" and/or "ratdecks" lol!