REVIEW OF THE BABYLONIAN TAROT, by Sandra Tabatha Cicero

THE BABYLONIAN TAROT




Book and Deck by Sandra Tabatha Cicero
Llewellyn Worldwide
ISBN: 13:978-0-7387-0716-7
ISBN: 10:0-7387-0716-3

Whenever I get a new Tarot deck I can barely wait for my first complete look through the entire deck. Like a kid on Christmas morning, opening the gifts from under the tree, sometimes I’m not as pleased as others with the unwrapping. However, with this deck I was delighted.

The Babylonian Tarot’s images are very reminiscent of ancient Babylonian art, at least from my non-expert point of view. They are also extremely evocative, whether one is an experienced Tarot reader or not. A friend who knows next to nothing about the Tarot looked through the entire deck and was very engaged by it, and she is not always by the decks I share with her.

I have since used the deck to explore my night dreams. Since its images are not familiar to me – being from an ancient culture not overly exposed in our art and media – I found it particularly suitable to dream work. It may have shaken my preconceptions loose, allowing for a rather dream-like response on my part.

One of my pet peeves is when a deck is so small that details of the art are hard to see – this deck is a perfect size. Another pet peeve is thin paper stock for the deck – this one is a good weight and nice to handle. The traditional 78 cards all have zodiacal, planetary, qabalistic, and elemental correspondences listed in a detailed appendix. The deck also has five additional cards (one new Major and four extra Courts).

The accompanying book has a wealth of information on a host of Babylonian Deities and legends attributed to the cards, many highlighted with quotes from ancient texts, and all rounded out with suggested Tarot meanings. There are also two Tarot layouts designed especially for use with this deck, and a rich bibliography filled with cites to material on ancient texts.

This is a thoroughly thought out and beautiful deck and book set. I highly recommend it.

‘til next time, keep exploring various decks, and enjoying The Tarot,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)**** SEE ALSO: Roswila’s Dream & Poetry Realm for some articles about Tarot.****