Quantum Tarot, Versions 1 & 2

[Guest libra]

I really feel like this is an underrated deck in the community!  The first edition, so the borderless one in the images, is out of print, but the second is still available (I believe?)

 

It's such a pretty, cosmic deck!  The second edition has a cool feature where some areas are glossed, so as you turn the cards, bits shine out!

 

[Little Fang]

The first edition was one of my first decks!  I used it for a little while but I didn't really understand the meanings, so I've been kind of hanging on to it.  I kind of want to get the second edition just so I don't mess up the OOP one! :)

[Guest libra]

The first edition was one of my first decks!  I used it for a little while but I didn't really understand the meanings, so I've been kind of hanging on to it.  I kind of want to get the second edition just so I don't mess up the OOP one! :)

 

Some of the cards are different (as you can see), but some, like Death, are pretty much identical. I do like some of the cards in the second edition more - the first has a lot of those weird floating x-ray faces that they nixed in the second edition! I don't THINK the second edition has the Universe card.  It's got borders, no gilding, and is a smidge smaller.  The book for the second edition doesn't have quite as much detail. But there IS that cool glossy effect!

 

ETA:  If you, or anyone else, is interested in seeing specific cards from either deck or snippets from the book, let me know!  I can definitely add more photos!

[2dogs]

I'm not great with Tarot symbolism and would much rather read science fact cards as Oracles so got 2.0 earlier this year for use in Tarot exchanges. It still has the full 80 cards including the Universe and Phoenix 8).

[Guest libra]

I'm not great with Tarot symbolism and would much rather read science fact cards as Oracles so got 2.0 earlier this year for use in Tarot exchanges. It still has the full 80 cards including the Universe and Phoenix 8).

 

Oh good to know! Mine were all out of order and I haven't used them in a while, so couldn't remember. Thanks!

[Le Fanu]

All the Court Cards were redone for the 2nd 2.0 edition and I much prefer the 2nd edition as the Courts are made with antique engravings and it reads much easier. Curious deck. Really brings the universe and the cosmic and the personal / intuitive up close. Another major difference is if you’ve got the 1st edition you’ve got all of Kay’s best writing on the cards themselves; what I mean is that the LoS edition, 2.0, reduced the booklet and it’s a shame as you really lose out on a lot of the concept and meaning of the deck. Hang on to your first edition to help you with reading the deck!

[Guest libra]

I wasn't a fan of the weird floating faces that's for sure! I tend to hallucinate and faces pushing themselves out of things is fairly common for me, so those courts were iiiiicky for my mental health! The new version is the one I actually use on a regular basis, despite my frantic search to own the first edition.

 

And yeah that first book is definitely better. I don't usually care for guidebooks, but my base knowledge of science is not where it should be and without it, a lot of what's really cool about this deck would be lost!

[2dogs]

I’m very much in favour of looking for meaning in the physical world around me so was a bit annoyed the authors copped out and reverted to mythology for the eight constellations used in the court cards. Fortunately the astronomy site https://www.constellation-guide.com/ described astronomical phenomena in each of those constellations from which I was able to derive similar meanings to the RWS tarot. The text in italics is an extract of the pertinent information.

 

Page of Wands - Orion

Orion Molecular Cloud Complex
 

 

The Orion Molecular Cloud Complex is comprised of a large group of dark clouds, bright emission and reflection nebulae, dark nebulae, H II regions (large clouds showing recent star forming activity) and young stars. It contains the Orion Nebula, the nearest known region of massive star formation to the solar system.

 

Youthful energy, creativity, enthusiasm, untapped potential, the start of a new project or journey, freshness, activity, growth, optimism, immaturity, undeveloped energy, new ideas coming into fruition, moving into a new phase of life, willingness to take action, unformed passion, the brief creative spark, the potential for new manifestations of energy and enthusiasm, spontaneity.

 

Page of Cups - Ophiuchus 

Zeta Ophiuchi
 

 

Like a ship plowing through cosmic seas, runaway star Zeta Ophiuchi produces the arcing interstellar bow wave or bow shock seen in this stunning infrared portrait. In the false-color view, bluish Zeta Oph, a star about 20 times more massive than the Sun, lies near the center of the frame, moving toward the left at 24 kilometers per second. Its strong stellar wind precedes it, compressing and heating the dusty interstellar material and shaping the curved shock front.

 

The shock wave presages the arrival of the star - something new coming into your life. It could indicate a message, intuition or premonition, important news seemingly out of the blue, unexpected new ideas, opportunity or inspiration, an unexpected and pleasant surprise.

 

Knight of Cups - Perseus

Perseus Cluster

 

 

Home to thousands of galaxies and one of the most massive objects known in the universe, the cluster is some 240 million light years away and receding at a speed of 5,366 km/s. The large lenticular galaxy at the centre of the frame, NGC 1277, is a remarkable untouched relic of the ancient Universe raising important questions for scientists on how galaxies form and evolve. This galaxy is also notable for having an exceptionally massive supermassive black hole at its centre, one of the largest black holes ever found, which may have been captured after being ejected from another nearby galaxy.

 

A quest either physical, romantic or spiritual begins. A goal that is so far away may feel unattainable at present. The knight of the Round Table on the grand quest for the Grail. The importance of a vision that calls to your heart. Looking for something greater outside oneself, a dream that catches the imagination. A spark of imagination, love and inspiration has been ignited in your heart. Finding your purpose in life, your path and creating the journey towards it.

 

Queen of Cups - Andromeda

Andromeda Galaxy

 

 

This is the closest spiral galaxy to the Milky Way and the farthest object in the night sky visible to the unaided eye. Being close enough to appear six times as wide as the full Moon, this galaxy provides a perspective similar to looking at our own Milky Way from the outside.

 

Perspective, detachment, distance, looking at your thoughts and feelings from the outside. A mirror reflecting the depths present in others, so they see themselves in a new light.

 

Knight of Swords - Hercules

Lambda Herculis
 

 

The solar system as a whole is moving in the direction of the star Lambda Herculis at some 45,000 mph. This was discovered by William Herschel in 1783 by comparing the positions of the stars he was observing with the positions given by John Flamsteed 100 years earlier. He made a number of other astronomical discoveries including the planet Uranus, the shape of the Milky Way galaxy, infrared radiation, the atmosphere of Mars.

 

Rapid movement, quick thinking, charging in, impulsiveness, progress, leading the way to greater knowledge and mental clarity, grand ideas, ambition, discovery, direction.

 

Queen of Swords - Cassiopeia

Cassiopeia A

 

 

This remnant of a supernova that first became visible from Earth about 300 years ago is the strongest radio source in the sky outside the solar system and was one of the first radio sources to be discovered. Due to its unique evolutionary status, Cassiopeia A is one of the most intensely studied of these supernova remnants. A lot of different information is obtained by imaging at different wavelengths of light - gamma rays, X rays, visible light, infrared, radio, revealing details such as the quantities and distribution of various chemical elements expelled into space by the explosion - oxygen, sulphur, iron, silicon, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium and hydrogen - in fact all of the elements needed to make DNA.

 

Information, knowledge, investigation, understanding, observation, insight, perception, wisdom, seeing the truth, inference from facts, evolution.

 

Page of Pentacles - Boötes

Boötes void
 

 

Also known as the Great Void or the Supervoid, this spherical region of the sky, almost 250 million light years in diameter, contains very few galaxies. So far 60 galaxies have been discovered in the Boötes Void and all of those are found in a tube shape running through the void.

 

Space, emptiness, the empty space or field needed to hold objects or grow crops, potential, a venture in its early stages, a beginner, fresh start, open mind, opportunity to start something new, the ability to grow, something that shows great promise, a sense of possibility and potential success, the beginning of a journey.

 

Knight of Pentacles - Centaurus

Alpha Centauri
 

 

This triple star system is the nearest star system to the Sun, Proxima Centauri being the nearest individual star and hosting the nearest planetary system to Earth. The brightest pair of stars in the system, Alpha Centauri A and B, orbit each other every 80 years while the faint red dwarf Proxima Centauri  (Alpha Centauri C) orbits the main pair with a period of about 547,000 years. As the nearest star system to the Sun, Alpha Centauri is a target for several interstellar exploration missions that are still in concept stage and will likely remain so for the foreseeable future because the technology that would reduce travel time to the star system does not yet exist. The existing spacecraft would take several millennia to get there although the use of solar sails propelled by high energy lasers to reduce travel time has been suggested. The Breakthrough Starshot concept would entail launching a mothership with about a thousand small, centimetre-sized spacecraft to high-altitude Earth orbit, then using ground-based (or space-based) lasers to focus a light beam on the crafts’ sails to accelerate them. The journey would take 20-30 years and a return message to Earth would take only about four years. The first craft may launch by the year 2036.

 

Small steps, patience, slow progress, fortitude, seeing a project through to completion, planning, practicality, hard work, responsibility, realism, striving for one's goals, steadiness, persistence.

[Morwenna]

I have 2.0; at one time I did want to try to find the first edition but by now I've given up. But this is one deck I haven't had out in years; I guess it's time! And thank you for those insights.