Sacred Circle Tarot Deck - Celtic sacred sites as tarot imagery
Many tarot decks claim a Celtic influence, but the Sacred Circle Tarot Deck grounds that claim in something concrete: photographer Paul Mason travelled to Avebury, Stonehenge, Glastonbury Tor, Newgrange and Callanish to shoot on location. Those photographs are the foundation of every card.
The deck is the work of Anna Franklin, whose writing focuses on Celtic mythology and Wicca traditions, and Paul Mason, who handled both the location photography and the digital compositing. Figures in robes and symbolic creatures were layered onto the real landscape images, creating scenes that feel tied to a specific place rather than to a painter's imagination.
Celtic names for classic archetypes
The 78 cards follow the standard structure: 22 Major Arcana and four suits - Wands, Cups, Swords and Discs - with court cards of Page, Knight, Queen and King. The Major Arcana keep their traditional RWS numbering but carry adapted titles throughout. The Fool is The Green Man, the Magician is The High Priest, the High Priestess keeps her title, the Empress is The Lady, the Emperor is The Lord and the Hierophant is The Druid. The Hermit becomes The Shaman, the Wheel of Fortune is The Web, the Hanged Man is Sacrifice, Temperance becomes Underworld and the Devil is Flummery - representing ego-illusion and self-deception. The World closes the sequence as The World Tree. Anyone familiar with standard RWS will find the numbering immediately readable; the renamed cards add a specific mythological frame to each archetype.
What this edition actually contains
This ISBN (9780738740133, Llewellyn 2014) is the standalone deck edition, not a kit. It contains 78 cards at 89 x 140 mm and a compact 80-page English guidebook. The guidebook covers upright and reversed keywords for each card, the Celtic naming conventions and a brief spread - the Web of Wyrd, also called the Sacred Circle spread. The in-depth mythological reference work of 336 pages belongs to the older kit version and is not included here. The complete box weighs approximately 340 g.
The cards have a prominent thick graphic border incorporating Celtic knotwork and spiral motifs, with the card title printed below each image in a traditional typeface. The backs display a symmetrical knotwork design around a central circle, making it impossible to tell from the back whether a card is upright or reversed.
The combination of real location photography and digital composition gives this deck an earthy, almost documentary quality that sets it apart from most illustrated tarot decks.
About the creators
Anna Franklin is the author of this deck and also wrote the extended companion volume included in the kit version. Her work centres on Celtic mythology, Wicca and the traditions of the Wheel of the Year. Paul Mason provided the location photography at the sacred sites and handled the digital assembly of the card scenes. The images are not studio illustrations but composites built from actual landscape and location photographs.
Specifications
- Author: Anna Franklin
- Photography and illustrations: Paul Mason
- Publisher: Llewellyn Publications
- Edition: Standalone deck edition (not a kit)
- Contents: 78 tarot cards and an 80-page English guidebook
- Card size: 89 x 140 mm
- Weight: approx. 340 g
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9780738740133
Questions we often get
Is this deck suitable for someone new to tarot?
The deck follows classic RWS numbering, so the structure is familiar to anyone who knows traditional tarot. The included 80-page guidebook covers the basics, but it is compact. Someone entirely new to tarot who also wants detailed background on Celtic symbolism would benefit more from the kit version with the 336-page companion, or from a separate reference book.
What is the difference between this deck and the Sacred Circle Tarot kit?
The kit version includes the full 336-page companion book with mythological and folkloric context for each card. This standalone deck (ISBN 9780738740133) contains only the 78 cards and the compact 80-page guidebook. The cards themselves are identical in both versions.
