TAROT OF VENICE

Tarot Venetian Carnival @
Eugene Vinitski

TAROT SET IN VENICE.

There are quite a few tarot decks set in Venice but they are not easy to get your hands on. This beautiful High Priestess by Eugene Vinitski and many other fabulously Venice iconic images can be found on Behance. Eugene is a Swiss illustrator and his work is magnificent. Is there an actual deck that I can get my hands on? I don't think so I suspect it is a deck in progress. I really love the deck so far.
To confuse the matter even more there is another deck that comes up with a very similar title. This one is produced by Roxana Paul and can be purchased from her website. This is a new trend for tarot illustrators to have their own web pages and sell the deck directly to the buyer. This is a good idea but these decks are expensive. Not that I don't agree with the price but it makes one think a lot before buying.                                            
This deck by Roxana Paul is also a beautiful deck of  masked characters portraying the Tarot fraternity dressed in carnival costumes. Every card is a close up of a character, from Majors to Minors. This makes it difficult to distinguish Major from Minor and even the suits. If I was working with this deck then the idea may be too embody each character one at a time. The image holds the essence concept.

Venetian Carnival Tarot @
Roxana Paul

RARE VENICE DECKS:

Tarocchi de Venezia

There are two decks set in Venice that are considered rare and hard to find. I have searched eBay but no sign of them there so I believe they will be in the hands of collectors. The first of these is the Venice Tarot or Tarocchi Venezia and is set in Venice in the C16th to C18th. This looks from the images I have seen to be a deck that is easily read and not a far cry from the Waite Rider. It was created in 2007 so it has become rare in a relatively short space of time. 

The second of the rare tarots of Venice is the Venetian Historical Tarot or Arcani Venezia and was published in 1980.and was created by Piera Ricca. This deck is major arcana only and it has a look of old faded parchments. The image of the hermit below has a great sense of Venice and monk studying with a great view of the city. It is set in the Renaissance and can have quite a gruesome feel. Lots of soldiers and the image of a Hanged Man cut in half shining from the gallows is quite confronting. This image is set in St Marks Square and I believe throughout history that location may have witnessed many atrocitites. This deck due to its age and being only a major arcana I believe would be very difficult to trace.

Venetian Historical Tarot@
Piera Ricca

TAROT OF CASANOVA.

This deck is readily available and could be classified not only as a Venetian deck but also an erotic deck. The art in this deck is by Luca Raimondo. This deck is taken from the memoirs of Casanova who was born in Venice and speak of politics, his loves, the occult and esoteric matters. The deck is set in the C18th in real locations in Venice from all over the city.
The deck has a traditional structure of major arcana and four suits. The court section of the suites is numbered from card eleven to fourteen. Each Ace begins in a different location in Venice. The storyline of each suit is one sexual escapade after another. There are duals in the wands, prostitution in the pentacles, gambling, this deck depicts a life style of opulent Venice which we believe Casanova lived.
I haven't found this an easy deck to read. Not one I'd pull out for my clients and I find it difficult to to know what suit I am in. The interpretations of the little White book and the images are a stretch, as the book tries to make out its a Tarot concept and the images are like a sex manual. This idea has potential for partners wanting new ideas, maybe pull a card before you begin, although all the nudity is feminine. A foreplay deck with visions of being in Venice.
It does transport me to Venice and when reading the deck I feel like I have entered a fantastical story that could be a lifestyle to escape into. Maybe this is what the legacy of Casanova is. A fantasy to escape into devoid of restrictive morality. I do love this deck. I think it is Unique. Published by Lo Scarabeo 2003.

Tarot of Casanova
@Lo Scarabeo

OF INTEREST.

Eugene Vinitski was calling for funding to back the project of the Mini Venetian Tarot

which was proposed to be available in September 2018.  I would love to see this deck produced.

Roxana Paul has other tarots for sale on her web page. Her latest Babylonian Tarot is also a kickstarter project.http://www.roxanapaul.com

People are becoming much more aware of collectors decks so keep an eye out for the two mentioned above.