Tarot Original 1909 by Waite & Smith — Classic Rider-Waite-Smith Deck

Short description:

Tarot Original 1909 by Arthur Edward Waite and Pamela Colman Smith is Lo Scarabeo’s faithful historical reproduction of the first Rider-Waite-Smith tarot deck printed in 1909 — the foundational deck from which virtually all modern tarot descends. This edition restores the original card proportions, printing colors, and finish as closely as possible to the historic originals, offering both collectors and serious students an authentic connection to the tradition’s source. The RWS system remains the most widely studied and commented upon in tarot literature, making this deck relevant for practitioners at every level.

Description:

Quick Specs

• Brand: Lo Scarabeo
• Type: 78-card tarot deck with guidebook
• Size/Quantity: 78 cards, standard full-size format
• Best for: Serious readers, collectors, and students wanting authentic 1909 imagery

The 1909 Original: Why Edition Matters for Rider-Waite-Smith

The Tarot Original 1909 is a faithful restoration of the very first printing of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, published in December 1909 by William Rider and Son in London. Arthur Edward Waite, occultist and member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, commissioned artist Pamela Colman Smith to create fully illustrated scenes on every card, including all pip cards, a design decision that had almost no precedent at the time. Smith completed all 78 illustrations in roughly six months, working in pen, ink, and watercolor.

What separates this edition from later Rider-Waite printings is the coloring. By the time the deck went through its Pam A, B, C, and D reprintings and eventually passed through U.S. Games Systems, the color palette shifted: blues and greens deepened, flesh tones changed, and the warm cream card stock gave way to brighter white paper. This 1909 restoration uses an unbleached cream-toned stock and period-accurate coloring that reads much closer to how Smith's watercolors originally appeared, with softer yellows and earth-toned shadows rather than the saturated palette most readers recognize.

Pamela Colman Smith: The Artist Behind Modern Tarot

Pamela Colman Smith, nicknamed "Pixie," was born in London in 1878 to American parents and spent her early years between Brooklyn, Manchester, and Kingston, Jamaica. She was a stage designer, illustrator, poet, and publisher before receiving the tarot commission. Her membership in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn provided the esoteric framework behind the Major Arcana, while the Minor Arcana scenes appear to have emerged largely from her own imagination. Smith is credited with being among the first illustrators to place full narrative scenes on all 78 cards, a move that transformed how tarot was read and shaped nearly every deck published afterward.

Despite creating the world's most widely used tarot deck, Smith received a one-time payment and died in 1951 in relative obscurity. The deck was known simply as the "Rider Waite Tarot" for most of the 20th century, dropping her name entirely. This edition, credited to Waite and Smith, is part of a broader effort to restore her rightful authorship. For serious practitioners and collectors, a deck that acknowledges her contribution carries real historical weight. Explore more options in my tarot decks collection.

Guidebook, Card Back, and Practical Reading Notes

This edition includes a guidebook written by Sasha Graham, a widely respected tarot educator and author whose approach is accessible to beginners while offering depth for experienced readers, covering upright and reversed meanings alongside historical context. The original Rose and Lily back design in period-accurate coloring is included, which later printings abandoned in favor of a simpler two-tone back. If you work extensively with Rider-Waite-Smith imagery for intuitive reading, journaling, or study of tarot symbolism, this is the edition closest to what Smith and Waite actually released.

How to Use Tarot Original 1909

The Tarot Fellow Standard

I stock this edition because it addresses a gap that standard Rider-Waite reprints leave open: what the deck actually looked like in 1909, before decades of reprinting shifted the colors, the stock, and the back design. If you own a modern Rider-Waite deck and wonder whether this is meaningfully different, the answer is yes, especially for study, teaching, or collection. The Lo Scarabeo production quality is solid, the Sasha Graham guidebook adds real value, and crediting Smith is long overdue. Browse my full tarot and divination collection to find the right deck for your practice.

Frequently Asked Questions