I’d been interested in adding a black and white deck to my collection without actually actively looking for one and then I saw this while watching Scorched Earth Tarot on YouTube. I became more and more drawn into Ana Tourian’s renderings of the cards. The Tarot of the Abyss is a Rider Waite Smith based deck so the meanings depicted are familiar. But many of the images are highly original conceptualisations. When I went through the deck I initially picked out way too many cards to photograph (says a lot about this deck straight up). So, to cull them down, I generally selected cards that differ from the usual renditions.
The Tarot of the Abyss Deck
The cards are drawn using pen nibs and ink. I enjoy lettering using the same method so an image quickly appeared of the creator working away for the three years this deck took to draw. It feels raw, organic and honest, like it’s not hiding anything. I find it funny that I wanted a black and white deck and yet as I look at the cards I imagine what colour the sky is, or their clothing etc. Each time it’s different except for the lady on the 3 of Swords pictured below. Her hair is always dark in my mind. I’m guessing there is something in that for me to work through but back to the cards.
As you can see from the cards above, she has provided two versions of both the 3 of Swords and the 10 of Swords. This is because she wanted to offer readers the choice between the familiar Rider Waite Smith meaning and a numerologically based one. In the case of the 3 of Swords her variation suggests the development of knowledge whilst the 10 of Swords suggests the culmination of knowledge. I like this approach and I’m surprised more deck creators haven’t consider it. Maybe they have and they do, but I haven’t seen it. The Tarot of Mystical Moments provides both a male and female version for the four Kings and the Emperor which to me read differently. But in the Tarot of the Abyss the focus is completely different for the alternate versions.
A lot of thought has gone into the Tarot of the Abyss. The way the generational aspect of the 10 of Pentacles has been depicted is beautiful, original and insightful. And, the ideas/insights that flow from the images on the 2 of Pentacles and the 2 of Swords add new dimensions to the cards.
The Majors offer many new insights as well. The close up image on XI Justice makes her difficult to ignore. I haven’t quite wrapped my head around XVIII The Moon yet but I look forward to it appearing in a reading so I can see what it brings up. And I love the thoughts that The Hanged One, (the renaming given to XII The Hanged Man), brings to mind. You need to turn things upside down to see what’s really going on. Well that’s my take from a preliminary look at the card anyway. As for XXI The World, I could fill a page with the thoughts and feelings that surfaced when I saw that card for the first time. That’s the power of this deck. It opens up so many additional interpretations whilst still staying true to the familiar meanings.
I also love the way the titles are presented. They stand out but I don’t find them intrusive. Instead they show that she gave attention to every aspect when she created the deck. I really like the font too. I’m a bit of a lettering geek. I even have books on fonts. And as I suggested earlier, when I find the time, I love playing around with lettering.
The cards themselves are printed on the type of US Games cardstock that I love working. They are so nice to shuffle and fan and they feel durable. They measure approximately 7 x 12 cm which makes them easy to handle. And, it probably comes as no surprise that I love that they are borderless. To top it off, these cards are non-reflective which I also love. That’s a lot of love I know but that pretty much sums up how I feel about the deck as a whole. In most decks there’s something that I’m not a complete fan of but so far in my dealings with this deck nothing has come up.
The suits are Swords, Pentacles, Cups and Wands with Kings, Queens, Knights and Pages making up the Court. The only changes to the Rider Waite Smith nominations are XII The Hanged One mentioned earlier, V The Hierophant has been renamed V The Wise one and she has changed XX Judgement to XX Awakening.
The Tarot of the Abyss Book
The card-sized 147 page book offers a background to the deck and tarot in general which includes a section on ways to read the Court cards. This information is clear and concise. The Major Arcana section tells the story of who is pictured and what they’re like. It concludes with a paragraph on what the card means in a reading. For the Minor Arcana the card explanation is followed by its meaning when it appears in a reading. I like the way she presents the information. It really takes you into the world of the card. She doesn’t provide meanings for reversals.
The Book ends with a section on reading the cards which wraps up with three spreads.
The Spreads
- Daily Draw (1 card)
- Six Card Spread
- The Abyss Spread (13 cards)
As the name suggests, the Abyss Spread was created alongside this deck. It has a spiral layout and I found it to be a fantastic spread for diving into yourself. If you’re looking for a deck that really encourages you to step into and own who you are then this deck is for you. You decide how you colour your world!
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Publishing Details
Deck Creator:
Ana Tourian
Pictured Version:
U.S. Games Inc, 1st Edition, 2021
