Lord of the Rings Tarot (2022 Version): A Deck Profile
AUTHOR’S NOTE: As a lifelong fan of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy and an equally enthusiastic devotee of tarot divination, I’m always interested in new tarot decks based on the LotR universe. Although there have been playing-card packs and card games in that genre, as far as I know — until recently — we have seen only one true tarot deck, the one created by Terry Donaldson and published in 1997. It did not receive stellar reviews so I didn’t buy it. (I was on long-term “tarot hiatus” at that time anyway.)
This 2022 release with artwork by Tomas Hijo is a welcome addition. There is no banal RWS symbolism to be found and the Minor Arcana are stripped-down, semi-scenic “pip” cards, but it’s the woodcut-style artwork that carries the day (although I suspect the images are hand-drawn and colored, not block-printed). Some of the trump and court-card figures are recognizable as characters from the epic, others not so much, but it doesn’t matter for divination.
I received it as a gift last week and — liking what I saw — decided to write a review about it. To judge its utility as a reading deck, I put it through my “Tell Me No Lies” new-deck personality profile spread, which is not intended to query the deck on how it will respond to oracular situations but rather to present a quasi-psychological snapshot of the “personality” that it might exhibit in use. (In short, I won’t be “interviewing” it by asking it questions about itself). I don’t believe that tarot decks embody human traits; they are merely ink-and-cardboard imbued with their creator’s artistic “presence,” but it’s fun to pretend that they can be “profiled” as if they do. Below is a link to the spread guidance.
https://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com/2017/08/04/tell-me-no-lies/
Here is the reading. (I used TdM suit terminology for simplicity; the only differences are “Batons” for “Wands” and “Coins” for “Rings.”)
The left-hand column is comprised of top-card pulls from four elemental sub-packs similar to those used in the First Operation of the Golden Dawn’s “Opening of the Key” method. The series progresses from top to bottom as Fire, Water, Air and Earth. The objective is to obtain a “first impression” of the deck’s temperament in four areas: “Energy” (Wands); “Heart” (Cups); “Voice” (Swords); and “Substance” (Coins/Pentacles). The card in the Wands position describes the kind of “energy” or vigor the deck exhibits, the Cups card portrays its emotional “heart,” the Swords card indicates how it will find its “voice” and the Pentacles card gives a sense of its “substance” or purposefulness. If the random card pulled for a position is elementally friendly to the “base” element, the deck’s expression of that quality will be straightforward and unremarkable; if, however, the two are mutually hostile, the deck will be more complex and nuanced in its pronouncements, demanding more sensitive interpretation.
Analysis:
The 4 of Cups in the “Fire” position is not a particularly auspicious alignment since it introduces Water to the fiery realm of Wands. However, the number Four is a stabilizing influence, so something constructive can be made of this; think “putting the kettle on boil.” As long as the steam stays within the vessel, it can be put to productive use. Perhaps the deck will offer some lively insights that, like the old Wendy’s commercial, are both “hot” and “juicy.”
The Queen of Cups is an ideal match for the “Water” position, bringing style and grace to the table. I believe this deck will be capable of intimate, heartfelt revelations.
The earthy Hermit in the “Air” position is elementally incompatible with the suit of Swords. The deck’s advice is likely to be carefully-considered and pragmatic, but sparing and meticulous rather than effusive or eloquent. I definitely won’t ask it what someone “thinks or feels.”
The 2 of Swords is similarly mismatched in the “Earth” position, but its reticent nature is not that far out-of-line with the understated quality of Coins. However, it’s center-of-gravity is likely to be elusive, and — although this is a Two — the deck may not be ideal for binary (aka “yes-or-no”) questions.
The middle column is designed to present the “tone” or “style” of the deck’s communication. To populate it, I located the card of the lowest denomination in each of the elemental sub-packs, the idea being that it will be the most fundamental expression of the suit’s energy, closest to the “root” of its power in that particular mode. Obviously, there will be no elemental mismatch between card and position as we saw in the first column.
Analysis:
The 2 of Wands in the “Fire” position seems entirely straightforward and sincere: deck will meet reader half-way in the interest of enthusiastic storytelling.
The 9 of Cups in the “Water” position makes me think “my cup runneth over;” the number Nine represents fulfillment and “the best that can be achieved” in its element (the Ten is a post-script to the abundance of the Nine that gradually erodes into complacency), so I would expect unstinting emotional richness out of the deck.
The Ace of Swords in the “Air” position represents a crystal-clear state of mental acuity. There will be few baffling “shadows” that can’t be penetrated when reading with this deck. (This might also be a caveat about trying to read reversals with it since this is essentially a “pip” deck like the Tarot de Marseille that doesn’t benefit from reversed orientation; warning duly noted.)
The Ace of Coins (Rings) in the “Earth” position is similarly unambiguous in its promise of pragmatic transparency. Practical considerations examined with the deck will yield readily to unblinking scrutiny (even if the image does look like the “Eye of Sauron”).
Background (Column 3):
The right-hand column provides an overall “personality profile” for the deck and, taken together with the mode of communication described in Column #2, it also offers a synopsis of its inherent nature. These cards are pulled randomly from the reassembled and shuffled sub-packs.
Analysis:
The energetic Knight of Wands in the “Fire” position could not be a more expressive of the suit’s mission: to convey unchecked fervor in the pursuit of stimulating insights. With the 2 of Wands it creates an “inherent nature” that is dynamic and robust.
The 9 of Wands in the “Water” position is not well-favored to attain the degree of focused resolve attributed to the Nine of the suit due to its elemental disaffection. However, as a low-energy card it will most likely be overshadowed by the well-placed Queen of Cups and 9 of Cups, and won’t be too disruptive to the continuity of feeling in their testimony. The two Nines indicate a “settled” perspective on emotional issues.
The Magician in the “Air” position is perfectly attuned to the elemental agenda and is likely to deliver some remarkably astute observations; as an avatar of Mercury it is on the same page as the Hermit (Virgo is ruled by Mercury) and should expand a bit on the constrained outlook of the latter card. Joined to the Ace of Swords, there is lucid sharpness of vision.
The Queen of Swords in the “Earth” position experiences the “pinch” of elemental misalignment and may feel compelled to overstate the case for mental manipulation of what should be natural or organic developments. It looks to overmaster the prosaic simplicity of the Ace of Coins, and the caution would be to not overthink what the deck has to say about practical affairs.
Synthesis of Qualities:
The Death card as the synthesizing “quintessence” for the array suggests a demeanor that is both transcendent and uncompromising. The deck should be ideal for looking beyond petty pursuits and into deeper matters.
I believe that, if I work with it it in the same way I approach the TdM, this deck will serve me well for my “action-and-event-oriented” manner of reading. The last deck I bought that had this kind of rustic authenticity was the Anna K Tarot, and that turned out to be excellent for pragmatic subjects like short-and-long-range weather forecasting. I wonder what the climate’s like in Mordor these days . . . .
Postscript: I realized belatedly that I didn’t talk enough about the physical deck. The graphic presentation and production values are superb, and the card stock is rugged (I don’t riffle-shuffle, but if I did it might give me some trouble due to its stiffness until broken in). The deck is a bit oversized and also thick when stacked, so it might be a challenge for those with smaller hands. The finish I find to be somewhat sticky, making the cards “grippy” when shuffled; I have to be careful to make sure they separate when I pull them for a spread. (Applying magician’s “fanning powder” would help with that.) The last point is that the edges of the cards don’t seem to be finished or polished in any way, and I see a little “uptake” of atmospheric moisture if I leave them out of the box for very long.
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on June 29, 2024.
