Links and Resources

Teaching, History,
Decks, General interest ...

Page suggestions are always welcome.

Drop me an email at DrTery@gmail.com or message me m.me/TalkwithTarot1

Tarot History

If you are interested in the history of Tarot then the first and best site to visit is Tarot Heritage. The authors Iolon and Sherryl Smith have done an amazing job and condensed a massive amount of information into an easy to navigate site. Visit the site and treat yourself to a Journey Through the Trumps - From Tarocchi to Major Arcana.

There is also an article in the Britannica (along with numerous links to related-articles and persons of interest). The Britannica can be tricky to navigate and there is a limit to the number of views before you hit a paywall.

There are, unfortunately, a vast number of sites suggesting ancient Chinese or Egyptian origins of the cards. You will find none of those here for, as A.E.Waite noted, the Tarot "has no history prior to the fourteenth century". (The pictorial key to the tarot. Part 1 Section 4)

Resources

The Internet Archive has a large number of Tarot books, some that "can be freely read and downloaded. Others can be borrowed and read in [Internet Archives] online book reader." (You will need to create a free account for some titles). Included amongst the available titles are numerous historic texts that would be otherwise hard to find. Here's a few in the archives worth browsing:

The Pictorial Key to the Tarot by A.E.Waite
Understanding Aleister Crowley's Thoth tarot by L.M.DuQuette
A Complete Guide to the Tarot & The Tarot Revealed by Eden Gray

Plus a wealth of other books, videos, and audio on... well, everything!

For reviews of Tarot decks then Aeclectic.net is hard to beat. Kate (aka Solandia) is "the founder, owner, editor, webmaster and pretty much everything-er of Aeclectic Tarot" and her near encyclopaedic site contains reviews of more than 2000 decks!

Teachers

A selection of Youtube teachers followed by Silverdebster:

Tarot off the Cuff : Hosted by Kevin Quigley, Tarot Off The Cuff introduces experienced guest readers who draw or select a card and discuss it. It’s an excellent resource for learning, gaining insight, an opportunity to view tarot and oracle decks, and it led me on to new influential readers.

Vincent Pitisci : I watched a few of Vincent’s videos before I really appreciated where he was coming from, as he doesn’t follow the common Rider Waite Smith method. I’m glad that I kept watching and now use his version of the Celtic Cross for certain readings. Vincent is approachable, holding regular Zoom meetings that are open to anyone so that’s another valuable avenue to make connections.

The Simple Tarot : Angie Green does with The Simple Tarot what a minimalist would do to a cluttered house. She gives you what you need to work with, presented in an attractive way you can readily use. I especially gained from her videos about the Court cards but she’s a go-to for all the basics, and clarity.

Atypical Tarot : Will is a pathfinder, connecting his scientific knowledge to his reflections on the tarot. I find it worthwhile to listen through his videos because he always connects the dots and I’m left with a fresh insight into the card. That’s gold.

Daily Tarot Girl : Kate’s just fun and she has everything on offer. I’ve enjoyed her Youtube videos and then followed up the smorgasbord of resources and interviews on her website. Her exuberance is catchy.

Contemporary Tarot : Madelyn follows the fairly traditional Rider Waite Smith card meanings so she provides another excellent, straight-forward grounding in this method. I don’t normally read reversed cards but always pay attention to what she shares.

Tarot Decks

Decks recommended by Talk with Tarot:

The Maori Oracle by P.A.Minnell: As featured on our blog. A further review by Bonnie Cehovet can be found on Aeclectic.net
Steampunk Tarot by Barbara Moore: A RWS-influenced deck assimilated into the world of steampunk with amazing (and incredibly detailed) artwork by Aly Fell. Review by Bonnie Cehovet can be found on Aeclectic.net. The Steampunk Tarot available @ Fishpond.
What the Ghost Tarot (by Davide Corsi) does is twine the deck "with the theme of ghosts as missed opportunities, as lives cut short, as experiences so strong they imprinted on time despite being lost from the physical world. Every ghost has a history or was part of the story, as in the Three of Swords. Rather than being just a heart pierced by three swords, it shows a well-dressed man in the rain, holding an umbrella above the ghostly figure of a woman." - Excerpt of Review by Solandia