The Tarot de Marseille is a centuries-old style of tarot, known for its bold woodcut-like illustrations and vivid colour.
This set brings together the 22 picture cards known as the Major Arcana. Each depicts a symbolic character or scene—from The Fool and The Lovers to Death, Temperance and The Tower—designed to invite interpretation rather than offer a fixed meaning.
Shuffle the deck and draw a card, considering the figures, symbols and details you notice. Draw another and see how the story changes. Use them for divination, storytelling or as a simple prompt for reflection and imagination.
materials : paper derived from sustainable forests, vegetable-based inks.
22 cards
dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.6 cm
The Tarot de Marseille is one of the oldest and most influential traditions of tarot. Its distinctive illustrated cards developed from playing cards produced in northern Italy and France, with the style becoming particularly associated with French cardmakers during the 17th and 18th centuries.
Despite its name, the Tarot de Marseille wasn't created by a single maker or necessarily invented in Marseille. The name came to describe a recognisable family of decks sharing similar figures, compositions and symbols. They were originally printed from carved woodblocks, then coloured using stencils—a process that accounts for their strong outlines, flat areas of colour and wonderfully direct graphic quality.
The 22 illustrated trump cards, now generally known as the Major Arcana, include enduring figures such as The Fool, The Magician, The Lovers, Death, The Sun and The World. Originally part of a card game, these images later became associated with divination and symbolic interpretation.
Art of Play
Founded in 2013 by twin brothers Dan and Dave Buck, pioneers in the art of cardistry, Art of Play brings a twisted graphic sensibility and a witty turn to the humble playing card. Manufactured with paper from sustainable forests and printed with environmentally friendly, vegetable-based inks, the quality of these decks is among the world's finest. Each pack is the product of an imaginative collaboration with artists and illustrators, spanning a range of aesthetics, with plenty of detail to discover over years of play.
