Boadicea's Tarot of Earthly Delights - collage art from museum sources
Some tarot decks draw from scratch. This one cuts, pastes and reorders. Boadicea's Tarot of Earthly Delights by Paula Millet is built from historical art sources: prints, engravings, paintings from different periods, assembled into new compositions.
The result is a deck that looks like a museum collection set adrift. Each card contains multiple layers, multiple eras, multiple styles. That makes it visually rich, but also complex.
What is different about this deck
The structure follows tarot, but with shifts. The four suits have new names that point more directly to the elements: Combustion for fire, Tentacles for water, Aether for air, Fungi for earth. The choices are organic and surreal at once.
Beyond the standard 78 cards, two additional archetypes have been added: Boadicea the Queen and the Perspicacious Platypus. These cards bring new perspectives into readings, outside the classical court cards and trumps.
The images themselves are layered. One card might combine a Victorian engraving with a medieval border and a baroque figure. That asks for time. You notice different details in every reading.
How the guidebook works
The guidebook is a hardcover volume of over 200 pages, fully in colour. Each card gets its own discussion in which Paula Millet explains why she chose certain images and how they connect.
This is not a standard card-meanings booklet. It is a visual tour through the collages, with background information on the original artworks. That makes the book readable on its own.
Lay down a card, look first at what you see in the collage yourself and note it. Only then read what Millet writes. Often those two perspectives clash, and that is where the reading sits.
Who this works for
This deck is designed for people who think visually and want to take time. The layering of the images asks for a different way of reading: not quickly grabbing a keyword, but looking at what emerges.
The extensive guidebook makes the deck accessible to beginners, but the art itself is complex enough to keep experienced readers engaged. It is not an entry deck in the classic sense, but the guidance is thorough.
About Paula Millet
Paula Millet works as a collage and graphic artist and has a background in museum and exhibition design. That shows in how she handles historical sources: not as decoration, but as building material for new meanings.
Her experience in translating complex information into image returns in the way she reshuffles tarot symbolism. Every element is there for a reason, but the compositions remain visually open.
Specifications
- Number of cards: 80 (78 standard + 2 additional archetypes)
- Extra cards: Boadicea the Queen, Perspicacious Platypus
- Guidebook: Hardcover, full colour, 200+ pages
- Language: English
- Publisher: RedFeather (Schiffer Publishing)
- Packaging: Deluxe storage box
- Box dimensions: approx. 15.4 × 7.3 × 26.8 cm
- Weight: approx. 1.3 kg
- Suits: Combustion (fire), Tentacles (water), Aether (air), Fungi (earth)
Questions we often get
Why 80 cards instead of 78?
Paula Millet added two additional archetypes outside the standard tarot structure: Boadicea the Queen and the Perspicacious Platypus. You can use these cards in readings for extra perspectives.
Are the cards difficult to read because of the collages?
That depends on how you read. If you are used to clear symbolism and fixed keywords, this deck asks for adjustment. The guidebook helps, but the images remain layered. That is the strength, but also the challenge.
