Haindl

The Haindl Tarot Deck
Rachel Pollack (U.S. Games Systems, 1990)

Review
I'm aware that complaining about mysticism in the tarot is like complaining about salt in seawater but there are limits.

Well not for this deck, apparently. The High Priestess is an example of what's going on here; the Hebrew letter gimel, the alchemical symbol for silver and the moon, and a rune that could be a revered uruz all occupy the corners. Combined with the I-Ching symbols on the pip-like Minors, this looks for all the world like throwing random symbols on the cards in order to look "syncretic" and "esoteric" and other things no doubt ending in -ic.

This comes hilariously unstuck with the court cards. Indian gods make up the Wands in the East, European gods make up the Cups in the North, Egyptians gods make up the Swords in the South, and Native American gods make up the Stones in the West- sorry, that's three gods and Chief Seattle, a very human leader and orator who died in 1866.

It's a shame, because the art would be very agreeable if it was just allowed to stand on its own merits.