Carta Mundi, 1970
This is one of those old, cheap decks I purchased off of eBay hoping for a nice, broken in deck. Instead, I received an old deck that was unused. I wasn't sure about using this deck (or the others), but they were purchased to be used. I didn't pay very much for them and I am not a real collector anyway. I want to use what I have, not preserve it.
This particular deck is absolutely beautiful. The cards are nice and shiny from not being used. The box is similar to the 1970 Carta Mundi box shown at the World Playing Card Museum, but not quite. It is blue, with the astrological symbols, but not exactly the same. The cards are in French, with playing card inset (oval) and verses. I have found that my French is not as rusty as I thought. Could I hold a conversation? No. But could I read a Lenormand card? Oui!
Lenormand decks are a bit of an enigma for me. There are several systems (Treppner, Sylvie Steinbach, Melissa, etc. ) and I am not sure of any of them! I don't have any books and the information on the Internet is all over the place. I try to read them intuitively, but sometimes that doesn't work well. I spent the week being alternatively frustrated and inspired. I do not care for the roller coaster and have decided that until I can get some sort of instruction / background with these cards that I am going to shelve them.
As a reading deck, I am not sure that they are suitable for daily readings. They seem to be better suited to readings with a definite question that needs a definite answer. They also are quite fun for "Lessons of the Day." These readings are usually not related to the day at all, but are lessons that can be taken from just looking at the cards. This is an exercise I turn to when I don't care to know anything about my day. It is fun and helps me to learn new systems.
Rating these is a bit difficult. I can compare them to the Biedermeier styled Czech deck from a few weeks ago: I prefer the Biedermeier system! But really, it isn't fair to rate something about which I am completely clueless. The cards themselves are collectible, so for now, that will be the rating!
Rating: Collectible
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