Aquarian Tarot — 78 Cards | David Palladini | 350gsm Double Embossed | U.S. Games Systems
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“The Aquarian Tarot is one of the most beloved and enduring tarot decks of the 20th century.”
First published in 1970 by U.S. Games Systems and illustrated by David Palladini, the Aquarian Tarot is one of the most iconic and influential tarot decks ever produced — a landmark of 1970s Art Nouveau and Art Deco design that has remained in continuous print for over fifty years. This edition is printed on 350gsm double-embossed card stock for a premium tactile quality that does full justice to Palladini’s extraordinary artwork.
The Aquarian Tarot reimagines the Rider-Waite-Smith system through the lens of medieval stained glass, Art Nouveau illustration, and 1970s psychedelic design — producing a deck that is simultaneously ancient and modern, mystical and graphic. Every card is a masterwork of flat colour, bold line, and decorative pattern: figures in elaborate medieval costume rendered in warm terracottas, burnt oranges, deep blues, and dusty pinks against cream grounds, with the card names in a distinctive hand-lettered Art Nouveau typeface.
The Major Arcana are extraordinary. XIV Temperance is a magnificent frontal figure — a crowned woman in an elaborate feathered headdress and scaled golden robe, arms outstretched, flanked by two great serpents — one of the most striking Temperance cards in all of tarot. XV The Devil is a goat-headed Baphomet with bat wings and a pentagram on its forehead, two chained figures below — rendered in Palladini’s distinctive flat graphic style. XVI The Tower is a tall stone tower struck by lightning, seen from below against a stormy blue sky, waves crashing at its base. XVII The Star is a magnificent peacock-tailed figure kneeling before a dark sky, a great star above her, rendered in deep blues, purples, and golds. XVIII The Moon is a vast blue crescent moon in profile against a deep purple sky, a small figure below — one of the most haunting Moon cards in tarot. XIX The Sun is a great radiant sun face with geometric rays in orange, red, and gold, two figures below in a walled garden.
The Minor Arcana are equally distinctive. Two of Pentacles is a figure in a wide-brimmed pink hat juggling two pentacle discs on a ribbon of infinity, ships on a wavy sea behind him — rendered in Palladini’s warm, flat, graphic style. Seven of Pentacles is a figure in profile in a pink and orange robe, seven pentacle discs arranged in a vine beside her, a raven at her feet — contemplative and beautifully composed.
The card backs are one of the most recognisable in tarot: a bold cobalt blue and white design of interlocking fish scales, waves, spirals, and Art Nouveau botanical forms — dense, intricate, and unmistakably Aquarian. The box is the classic dark forest green with a coral-red top panel reading Aquarian Tarot — U.S. Games Systems, Inc. — Stamford, CT — Made in Italy, and The Lovers on the front — two figures in elaborate medieval costume facing each other in an Art Nouveau arch of reeds and botanical forms. The box spine reads Aquarian Tarot — by David Palladini.
For collectors of classic and vintage tarot, lovers of Art Nouveau design, and anyone who wants to own one of the most important tarot decks of the 20th century. The Aquarian Tarot is a genuine piece of tarot history — and on 350gsm double-embossed stock, it has never felt better in the hand.
