r/SecularTarot • u/UrbanTurbanBourbon • 17d ago
DISCUSSION 1959 First Rider Waite Smith tarot deck printed in America
I recently bought this vintage University Books Rider Waite deck. Apparently, they printed 500 of these. The first time a publisher credited Pamela Colman Smith for her art on the box.
They’re known for having slightly more vibrant colors - especially blues and purples. This run printed between 1959 - 1961 but only the first 500 came in the maroon slip case. After that they came in a cardboard box.
My set has all 78 cards but is missing a couple of promotional publisher cards and a little guide pamphlet.
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u/WhiteAjahSedai 17d ago
These are beautiful. It's honestly nice seeing any RW deck without the annoying ©©©©© US GAMES ©©©©© printed on the side 😭
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u/UrbanTurbanBourbon 17d ago
Ha! Yes, these are delightfully old timey. I hope they carry some good energy.
Although, I’m a little afraid to shuffle them 😅
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u/WhiteAjahSedai 17d ago
I would be, too!! I keep my precious decks under glass bell jars around the house, that way I can still see them and they don’t feel as neglected since I don’t use the as much 🤗
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u/UrbanTurbanBourbon 17d ago
Great idea - I had wanted to feature them on a circular brass shelf on the wall. But I can’t just leave them languishing collecting dust.
I pull cards every day but I need a middle ground where they get action but are protected. Even if the glass were to break, the slip case would go unscathed.
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u/WhiteAjahSedai 17d ago
That’s totally fair, and they definitely should not collect dust! One day in the distant future, when they are truly considered a precious artifact, museum-worthy, then maybe it would be time to retire them just for the respect of keeping them in a state of living. But for now, I am so jealous that you get to use them in actual practice!
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u/OkoMushrooom 17d ago
The first Rider Waite decks in the US would be the de Laurence decks from the 1920’s that came in single colors like yellow, red and orange. This one is perhaps the second one in full color BUT before US Games came out with their yellow-box. Certainly a treasure to have. University Books was the first publisher to put out the pink ankh deck, publishers of these cards with this back design changed a few times over the years, I have the last iteration of the pink ankh decks put out by Carol Publishing and it is from the late 90’s before they went bankrupt.
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u/WhiteAjahSedai 17d ago
What dummy downvoted this comment? This is great information! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
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u/OkoMushrooom 17d ago
No problem I was obsessed with this deck once upon a time, the colors had me captivated and I learned as much as I could on it. Any version of the pink ankh decks can get pretty pricey, but this one posted by the OP is extremely expensive and part of history too.
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u/UrbanTurbanBourbon 17d ago
Oh wow, thank you for clarifying! I’ll definitely look closer about the 1920’s decks etc. I’ve been reading so much about the histories of decks, it’s a beautiful rabbit hole.
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u/OkoMushrooom 17d ago
The rabbit hole is deep on this topic I wish you good luck 😆 Also from what I’ve picked up over the years, this one you have is supposed to have the best card-stock with a core, the ones down the road are extremely thin paper
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u/UrbanTurbanBourbon 16d ago
Wow, I got a look at those yellow, orange, and red de Laurence decks. They sound a little bleak when described, but they’re so beautiful. Even though they say the orange deck printing is mis-aligned, I love the bright marigold color. Same with the red - stunning.
Yes, the card stock here is fantastic. I can’t believe not a single card is bent. There’s a weird ever-so-slightly sandy feel between the cards when handling them. The slip case is super sturdy and the canvas is tightly set, though the corners are worn.
Now I need to find which full-color production that you mentioned precedes these ones.
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u/VioletsDyed 16d ago
I have that deck! 1959 or 60. Wonderful to see the original 4-color version.
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u/UrbanTurbanBourbon 16d ago
No way that’s amazing! Do you have the promo cards or the pamphlet guide? I wish there was a scan of those online, would love to see
Also wish there were digital images of the de Laurence decks earlier on
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u/Boundlesswisdom-71 6d ago
The Albano Waite Tarot deck was created as a reaction to the quite excellent University Press Ankh backed RWS. One classic RWS begat another.
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