The Mary-El Tarot, 2nd Edition: (Tarot Kit Box Set with 78 Cards and Guide Book)

The Mary-El Tarot's lovingly and painstakingly crafted imagery and symbolism have depth and living presence. Each card is a transformative experience on its own, but the interpretive text matches each card in power, depth, and scholarship. Together, they are exactly what I need Tarot to be - reflection, revealer, teacher, altar and gateway. I return to this deck over and over, and each time it surprises me!

I own 42 Tarot and Oracle decks and use them all frequently but the Marie-El has been a game-changer for me since I purchased the 1st edition a few years ago. This has been my preferred deck from the time I first unwrapped it. It speaks to me like no other deck has and the book!! The book is like attending a Western Mystery School. You will get a profound education in the tarot if you read the myths and symbolic lessons the author shares. This 2nd edition offers some serious improvements. The cards are smaller, not coated with the old plastic that peels, easier to shuffle, silver-gilt, and borderless with a few changes to 4 cards - see the pics attached. The book is refined and the traditional meanings have been removed - which I never used or wanted, so compelling are the author's meanings. The box is shorter, more in line with other boxes so it fits on my shelf easier. I am not over the Moon for the new Hierophant, 3 of Swords, Judgement, or High Priestess designs - probably because I have bonded with the old, however, they are extremely well thought out and explained in the book, which alone is worth the price in my opinion. This deck has and still does stand head over tails from all other decks. If you like the Tree of Life, Alchemical sort of flavor of this deck, for me a second runner up would be The Night Sun Tarot.

I have had at least 10 decks over the years. I read for my own pleasure, my own development, and growth. I find I can resolve issues, calm myself by reading the tarot. That said- I only read with decks I connect with- and when the connection goes, I usually give the deck away- I have given away the voyager deck, I gave away the ruhrig tarot. The Mary- el tarot feels holy. It has haunted me since I opened the box. This is an intuitive deck- the accompanying book is deep, and connects the dots to the artist’s interpretation, and artwork. This deck doesn’t have many symbols, and it would be a stretch to connect the images to any of the three traditional tarot teachings- I don’t need it to, the care of the artwork invokes a very deep meaning. This isn’t a feel good, positive deck- that is to say this isn’t a beginning to heal and accept yourself deck. This is a deep healing, duality not as light and dark , but more of the balance- we encompass all duality. There is a good deal of nudity, but w/o sexualization. There is some dual sex images hat could shock, but found them so gracefully depicted that any un-ease was charmed away. If this deck sings to you at all, please follow your heart, it is a very beautiful deck. Mine arrived in perfect health, nary a hair out of place.

First of all, I've read and seen the reviews of this Second Edition of the Mary-El and I kind of assumed the deck I received would also be damaged and in bad shape when it arrived to me. Luckily enough, my deck came just fine. The paper band *did* break and the cards were lose at the bottom of the box that held the deck, but all of the cards were in excellent shape (no creasing, no chipping, no weird indents) and so I feel really lucky that I got a deck in good shape. Of course- that should not be the case- ALL the decks should have been in good shape. But I was surprised at how happy I was with the deck I received. As far as the changes made, I am pretty happy with them. Which is why I am giving four stars. I wanted an improvement on the first edition, and I got it, so I can't dock stars for the deck not being ABSOLUTE PERFECTION. All Schiffer (the publisher) said was the deck was going to be matte stock and borderless with a full color guidebook and that's what I got, so docking stars because it's not what I consider perfection seems unfair. Marie White gets five stars and Schiffer gets one. I HATED HATED the gloss that Schiffer had on the first edition, and the cards were WAY too big for my hands. Trimming them make the edges thicker, so while they were more workable for me, shuffling was always hard. These new smaller decks shuffle much nicer, the images quality is good, and I can finally use the deck the way I've always wanted to. I like the "sort of" matte finish, although I WAS expecting the same treatment that other Schiffer decks have gotten (that velvet-y matte thin cardstock that is durable and looks beautiful and shuffles like a dream no matter how large the cards are) and was bummed when it turned out to be just regular playing card stock that "regular" decks are printed on- sort of a satin finish. But it's still better than that original thick uber-gloss that the first edition had. The new guidebook is lovely. The full color is a great touch. I bet they probably didn't do the ultra-matte high quality cards because of the money they invested in making the guidebook full color. One thing I don't like- the giant font size of the card titles. That could have been made much smaller. It really does compete in an unfavorable way with the images on the cards. And I wish they had vignetted the images a bit at the card edges, as many other borderless decks do. It just makes the images "pop" more when they are borderless. I am happy with the changes. They didn't quite meet all my hopes and dreams, but I am VERY pleased with how workable this deck is now for me after wanting to really just use it (riffle shuffle, hold it in my hands, really get it "broken in") since I got the first edition. It feels like a brand new Mary-El experience to me, so I AM happy. I just wish that Schiffer had just gone the extra mile with this beautiful deck and gave it the cardstock and design it deserves. But that's on Schiffer- their quality has always been a little "meh" because they treat card decks like they are intended for display or gift giving rather than actual regular use so their quality NEVER has been very good. I'll always equate Schiffer and Red Feather with less-than quality as far as decks go, so that's why I can't really be too surprised that this deck wasn't given the treatment it deserved. Maybe someday...

What a beautiful deck! Sturdy box. Guidebook is large with color photos of the cards in full size. High quality book. Good stock. Easy to shuffle . Cards no boarders. Artwork is colorful and so imaginative a “journey through an abyss”. Its style is everything. Thoth, RWS & Marseille. This is a deep deck with a feeling for shadow work. Not a deck for young readers nor for beginners in my estimation. I’m sure this deck in all its prints have homes in many collections.

I'm soo happy with this! I received my order within a day. I was really worried about buying this deck because so many people had negative comments about the box and the card stock, but mine are perfect. They have change the inside of the box so that the cards don't slide underneath the upper insert. My cards came wrapped inside of the box (which I'm really happy about. ) the cardstock is thin but firm and not flimsy. They're in a satin mat finish, which makes them nice and slippery. I know that some people have said that the colors are not as deep or vibrant as the first edition, but that is due to the finish. Gloss always enhances the colors in artwork. The artwork is stunning and so is the guide book. Each page has the actual size of the card in full color. The edges are finished in silver And the cards are boarderless as they were originally intended to be. My box came with a few dents but I honestly don't care. As long as the cards are in perfect condition, which they are.

This deck is an absolutely gorgeous, diverse and new look on tarot that I’ve never experienced before. I had my eye on this deck for a while, and decided to buy it during quarantine as to learn and concentrate my energy into this new deck, it’s artwork and system. I find this deck to be quite a divergent deck, some cards read very RWS, others are more marseilles, and some are completely redefined. However, they all read smoothly with understanding from the guidebook, and make for an excellent deck. The artwork itself is astonishing, features a variety of body types and ethnicities, and explores the mystical and multi-facetted energies we suppress and are yet to explore. The cards range in focal points, with scenic moments balanced by close up portraits, yet all maintain the engaging style. My only criticism would be the card stock, and the quality of the product. None of the cards were scratched on arrival, and they were packaged securely, however the card stock itself is too flimsy and malleable for my liking. The cards bend too easily into one shape and don’t snap back, and I’m afraid they’ll stay so after continuous use. I find that they only effectively rifle shuffle face up (which I don’t like doing), yet I know this will change with further use. Also, the guilding used (although gorgeous) is quite sticky, and I found myself separating the cards from chunks built up together. Again, this stopped after shuffling, yet they still feel sticky and uncomfortable to shuffle at the moment, and there is a slight amount of flaking. Despite this, the image resolution is astounding, and I’m not concerned about the clarity of the cards for some readers. The rest of the packaging (including box and guidebook) are in great condition. Despite the issue with card stock, I would highly recommend this deck for experienced readers for a new perspective on tarot; for the effective guidebook, beautiful cards, and interesting story to tell.

Worldのカードの質感が違うと思ってチェックしたところ、何かで拭かれたように白くなってざらざらしていました。新品を購入したのに、そして決してほかのタロットと違って安くないのでがっかりです。とても楽しみにしていたので実に残念。

I am a bit disappointed, I don’t think it’s the seller’s fault though. Those cards seem cheap, the quality of the pictures is not that good, they should be a bit sharper. For that price I don’t think it worth it. Seller did a good job.

Le carte sono davvero molto belle. Le avevo viste recensite su web ma devo dire che dal vivo sono ancora più evocative qualità delle carte forse la migliore che io abbia trovato fin'ora. Il libretto di accompagnamento è più grande e sicuramente dettagliato di quelli che si trovano nei mazzi "classici". Immagini a colori e testo ovviamente in inglese. Cofanetto grande e elegante all'esterno. L'effetto cala un po' aprendolo. Gli scomparti interni per libretto e mazzo forse meritavano un po' di cura in più sono di semplicissimo cartoncino ripiegato e tagliato a creare scomparti ma sotto è vuoto e sembra un po' instabile. Tempi di spedizione un po' lunghi ma il pacco è arrivato cmq con largo anticipo. Molto soddisfatta