Hermetic Tarot

The lwb of the Hermetic has information on the symbolism used in the cards and is quite good - especially for a lwb
I think any book that deals with a Golden Dawn deck will have useful information - for example good books on the Thoth or Wang's Golden Dawn Tarot, as these decks follow the same system.
I got The Qabalistic Tarot by Wang as someone recommended it as a good reference book for the Hermetic, but the Hermetic Tarot is not even mentioned in this book, it uses (among other decks) the Thoth and the Golden Dawn Tarot.

Thanks WS.

Some of the books I can see on my bookshelf, are as follows -

Understanding Aleister Crowley's Thoth / Duquette
Crowley Tarot / Banzhaf
The Definitive Tarot / Bill Butler
The Tarot / Mouni Sadhu
The Devils Picturebook / Huson

Would any of these be of use?

LB

I agree with WolfSpirit that the LWB for this one is pretty good. It's an interesting read. Usually I read the intro (if that) and put it away, but this one I read in its entirety.

Israel Regardie's book, The Golden Dawn is helpful, but not just with this deck. I would suggest to anyone who is thinking about Hermetic studies to have a copy on hand.

It is a damn shame that the new version turned out this way. I truly do not know what US Games is thinking sometimes. But I had to quit worrying about it 'cause it was driving me nuts!

If you do get a chance to get the first edition though get it. It's a masterpiece. It's the only b/w deck I have. I usually don't like them, but when I saw the artistry I couldn't resist.

Little Baron said:

Thanks WS.

Some of the books I can see on my bookshelf, are as follows -

Understanding Aleister Crowley's Thoth / Duquette
Crowley Tarot / Banzhaf
The Definitive Tarot / Bill Butler
The Tarot / Mouni Sadhu
The Devils Picturebook / Huson

Would any of these be of use?

LB

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I think someone once posted that they used the Duquette book for the Hermetic, I don't have the book myself - I intended to get it but never got round to actually buying it.

I think I might be the only person in the world that can't actually see what the fuss is with the Duquette book. I have gotten so little from it in the past.

LB

Yes I always only heard positive things about Duquette, but maybe that also had to do with his writing style - maybe his book was easier to digest than other books on the Thoth (maybe especially for beginners ?)

Does anyone know if Tarot Decoded by Liz Hazel would be helpful with the Hermetic ? TD seems to deal a lot with dignities and correspondences so maybe that would be of help here (this is another book I always meant to get but don't own yet).

I like the laminate on this deck, I love 'em when they're slippery--a very slight smell of ink which doesn't bother me too much.

Yeah, I checked the Tower card--jaggedy like LB said--not apparent until you put a magnifying glass to it. I don't get that since there are several software programs that will size photographs and other art larger without pixelation.

Upon consideration I have decided I like the titling and added white space on the new deck. Sample attached.

I find the old border and titling to detract from the picture--it's all sort of squished in and compacted to the point where your eye has no rest.

I find the new deck more comfortable to look at for that reason. There is so much detail in each card and I prefer the focus on that myself, rather than a stronger font for titling and Roman numerals.

As far as the Duquette book goes, I like it because it has been organized well--not dumbed down, but **simplified** which is probably why it's popular. I'm interested, but further detail would not be something I'd want. Those keen on Hermeticism and the Golden Dawn will of course have additional books in their library with the extra detail they want.

[p.s. I have decided that I really, really like The Foolish Man. I love the crocodile which is similar to the one on Maxwell Miller's Universal deck. I must have a complete go-through with the Thoth and this. I always meant to but got sidetracked. Good time for a cuppa and the magnifying glass.]

WolfSpirit said:

Yes I always only heard positive things about Duquette, but maybe that also had to do with his writing style - maybe his book was easier to digest than other books on the Thoth (maybe especially for beginners ?)

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It's excellent - but I have never read it thinking of the Hermetic.....
I don't think the brilliant Huson will help with this particular deck.

WolfSpirit said:

Does anyone know if Tarot Decoded by Liz Hazel would be helpful with the Hermetic ? TD seems to deal a lot with dignities and correspondences so maybe that would be of help here (this is another book I always meant to get but don't own yet).

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It seems to help with pretty much anything actually - but is hard work... (IMHO)

Thanks for the comparison picture room. You make a good point about the titles. I can see how the pictures breath much better in the recent version.

I don't hate the laminate. It looks quite nice. But I find more matt finishes shuffle better for me.

Busy here, so will get back to this when I get home.

LB

Little Baron said:

Thanks for the comparison picture room.

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I'm not sure if I got the size ratio correct since I don't have the first deck, but I think it's close enough.

But I find more matt finishes shuffle better for me.

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I put a dent with my nail through the title card in the Legend Arthurian deck when I was trying to shuffle in my lap and I had to grab them when they all slipped. You have to be extra careful.

I would personally prefer the matte laminate that is on the Templar Tarot or one of my Chronicle Books cards like the Nature's Pharmacy or Relax decks. It's lovely, particularly for facsimile editions of historic decks. You get the sturdiness but you can still shuffle and keep the cards nice.