Beltane Playing Cards
The Wheel of the Year continues to turn. Beltaine was a festival that celebrated fertility, creative energy, and fruitfulness that took place at the beginning of the sun's final waxing cycle towards its highest point in late July. The Beltane deck represents this celebration.
The ancient peoples of Europe lived not by a calendar of months and days, but by observing and listening to the signals from nature. These civilizations lived and died by the harvests and the changing of the seasons. This deck, as is the entire series, is a tribute and honor to those rituals.
Released alongside the Lughnasadh deck, together they represent both the growth and harvest, an intertwining tale of life.
Between the Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice is where Beltane is celebrated, the beginning of the sun's final waxing cycle towards its highest point in late June. With crops and plants ripening and nature being fully awake, Beltaine was celebrated - and is still celebrated today throughout parts of Ireland and the rest of the world - as a festival of fertility, creative energy and fruitfulness.
The Beltane deck comes in a luxury tuck made of a matte green paper, finished with gold metallic foil accents and an interior foiling. Both the front and back of the tuck have embossed accents too, which is always nice to feel.
The back design of the cards is the same design as the back of the tuck, but the difference is seen in the color. The back of the cards is a light green, the the plants and other accents are green and purple with other shades thrown in.
The faces are fully custom from the courts to the pips. Artwork and sketches are strewn about all of the number cards, but the courts themselves are elegant portraits.
This deck is one of a series that form The Wheel of the Year. This is the relatively modern amalgamation of the seasonal festivals of the Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, and Norse peoples, and features eight different festivals that take place roughly twice every season -- most importantly, during solstices and the mid-points between them. Jocu is commemorating these festivals with this deck series.
The deck consists of 56 cards:
- 52 playing cards
- Two non-identical jokers
- Two ad cards
This deck was originally available via a Kickstarter campaign that was fully-funded in 2021.
Where to buy?
Last I checked, you should be able to pick up Beltane Playing Cards at Jocu Playing Cards. The last price tag I saw for this deck was set at $17.60.