Well hello there - and a day after my birthday! This is the latest edition of the Crowley-Harris/Thoth Deck (© 1944, 2023 Ordo Templi Orientis, University of London & AGM-Urania).
It's a truly lovely edition and an update on the so-called Neuausgabe Edition from 2006/2008. According to the booklet, the final colour corrections for the present edition were done last year. If memory serves, the 2006 edition had slightly 'colder' tones compared to this one. Here we finally have the most truthful and up-to-date Thoth Deck, in terms of the original watercolour paintings by Frieda Harris.
The 79-page booklet contains a highly informative Foreword and Afterword by William Breeze, documenting the journey of the Thoth Tarot. The booklet also contains a Preface by Gerald Yorke, which is published here for the first time. It's an essay written in 1953 for the then-planned Neptune Press edition for "The Pack of Thoth" (which never materialised).
All three versions of the present edition (Small, Medium, Large) come with identical contents, apart from an extra replacement (empty) card in the Medium version. I absolutely love the inclusion of the Portrait Card, featuring a young Crowley on one side and a young Harris on the other.
Personally speaking, I also prefer the new title "The Thoth Tarot - Aleister Crowley + Frieda Harris", instead of the older "Aleister Crowley Thoth Tarot". Frieda Lady Harris seems to be finally getting the attention she deserves.
The cardstock is slightly thinner compared to the standard 350 GSM stock. Fair enough; many modern decks are no longer printed on it. Also, some of my students have told me they prefer the slightly thinner type, as it makes shuffling easier. Also also, the cards bend more, which means they don't get as easily damaged.
It's a new era for the Thoth Tarot, one which began last year with the birth of this new edition. It makes me incredibly happy to know the legacy of Crowley & Harris is getting the respect it deserves.
However, one wish remains: to bring back the original, handwritten titles by Frieda Harris. Maybe one day...
Aeon-sized Thank You to Hymenaeus Beta & Mika A A Hyytinen.
Also, not-to-be-missed: The Lady and the Beast
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