The Tarot of the Dead, illustrated by Monica Knighton

Reviewed by Serena Brink

This tarot deck was inspired by the Mexican "Day of the Dead", and treats a potentially menacing or scary topic with delightful joie de vivre.  Although the pack is obviously inhabited by skeletons, they are a grinning bunch who probably wouldn't scare you if you bumped into them at a party (some of them look like they are addicted party goers). The ideal pack for Halloween - if you don't want to scare anybody. The illustrations have been done in watercolour, and the style is flowing and whimsical. Monica Knighton is an accomplished artist who is able to convey feelings and character with a deft, light touch.

Death has always been a natural part of the major arcana sequence, but it always got the unlucky number of 13. In this pack, 'Tarot of the Dead', death gets all the numbers. So does this pack overdo the relationship of the tarot with death?  Probably, but it's so light footed about it that the skeleton's are not overwhelming. The pack is sufficiently traditional in the way the images convey meaning that an effective tarot reading can be done. The reading I did for myself got to the bare bones of the matter without any difficulty. Each major arcana graphic has been carefully structured so that although the subject matter is sometimes depicted with humour and is very innovative, it gives a clear message to the tarot reader.

This is a pack that invites description and provokes speculation.  Just look at the Hierophant and the World! They are definitely high on something. For instance, the Hierophant sits on his deck chair in the garden with his legs crossed, smoking a cigarette as two pink flamingo's saunter past him.  He is so relaxed that I wonder what's in the cigarette? I'm surprised he's only seeing pink flamingos. As befits his position as spiritual leader of the dead - he wears clothes, presumably his oldest, most casual gardening clothes. These set him apart from the many other skeletons in the major arcana who are naked - but not terribly sexy. If you asked him for advice he would probably just say, "Chill". In the days of my youth, teenagers said, "Chill out", but with the current deadening of brain cells due to too much TV and not enough Tarot, our local teenagers can only manage one word, "Chill".

As for the World!  She appears to be an ecstatically dancing violinist, who seems to be very happy.  I presume she is so happy because Orchestra practice got cancelled or the conductor died or something, and she went to a party instead.  She also looks as if she has been popping speed, which is probably why she went to the hairdresser and had her hair dyed pink on the way to the party.

I'm not trying to imply that Death is a drug addict or anything. There are some very sobering characters, or rather skeletons, in this deck.  A good example is Justice who is definitely very scary.  She looks like a demented aunt or mother-in-law (the one who wears a funny hat that looks like a tea cosy, and old fashioned blue dresses), and she holds a huge pistol in one hand.  I suspect she is a kindred spirit to the Queen of Hearts in 'Alice in Wonderland' who yelled 'off with her/his head' at the least provocation. This particular Justice is likely to take a pot shot at you with her pistol if you annoy her, and who knows what's going to annoy her - she's obviously not mentally stable. She'd be really popular if she had her own TV show.

Although the Hanged Man ought to be uncomfortable, he looks nonchalant as he hangs from a tree holding onto his detached skull, which makes me think that he’s been smoking with the Hierophant.  Fortunately, the rest of the skeletons that inhabit this tarot pack are of widely diverse inclination and character. The Wheel of Fortune skeleton rides a tricycle (one of those Victorian one's with the large front wheel) with urgency and verve - he's obviously so focused on where he is going that he doesn't care that he just ran over a snake. Strength is a showy fire-eater, he'd be the life and soul of any party; and the Emperor sits in front of a computer while talking on the phone - a typical workaholic who carries on working even in the afterlife. The Fool is a hitchhiker with a dog that chases cars, not that this seems to worry him, maybe because he's a fool, and he's dead.

In contrast to the rest of the Major Arcana, Death is a pregnant woman - the only character with flesh on her bones. In this tarot pack, the number 13 is evidently lucky. Make's you think doesn't it?  Death - pregnant - birth - death - pregnant - rebirth, for eternity. Or maybe not eternity, maybe just a thousand lifetimes, until we stop watching TV and start playing with the Tarot.

The minor arcana doesn't depict scenes in the way the Rider/Waite deck does, instead it follows the earlier tarot tradition of pip cards - pens (inflammatory words?) replace the traditional wands or batons, coffins replace cups as containers, the more modern image of pistols replaces swords, and film reels inexplicably replace pentacles or coins.  Fortunately, the booklet explains the film reels quite satisfactorily, but as the reasoning is somewhat subtle, I'll leave it to you to read the booklet.  Personally, I prefer the Rider/Waite Tarot style with scenes in the minor arcana, but I suppose if the minor arcana were crawling with skeletons, it would be too much.  I think the court cards are superb. Each court card has a mirror image, as is common among medieval card packs, and they have been given such character and style that I find them both pleasurable and fascinating to look at. They are certainly not the boring, static royalty of many medieval packs.

I don't think I would use the 'Tarot of the Dead' for professional tarot readings. Many people are uncomfortable with the subject of death, so this pack might be a bit too macabre for the average citizen. It’s a little too direct and much too unapologetic - there are no 'passed on's' here.  However, those who happily refer to those who have died as having 'kicked the bucked' or as 'pushing up daisies' will feel right at home with this tarot pack.

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