Tarot of Mystical Moments

Tarot of the Mystical Moments - surrealist collage with five additional female court cards

Most tarot decks stick to 78 cards. This one has 83. Those five extra cards are not an expansion of the system, but a choice: female versions of the four Kings and the Emperor. You decide which energy to use in a reading.

Catrin Welz-Stein works with digital collage. She combines vintage prints, botanical illustrations and historical portraits into images that feel dreamlike but are sharply composed. Her style recalls Magritte, with that surrealist effect where objects are arranged logically yet form a strange reality.

What you see on the cards

The images are built in layers. A woman with a bird's nest for a head. A man with flowers growing from his chest. Everything is printed clearly, no blurred transitions. The colours are soft, often sepia or faded blue, with the occasional sharp accent.

The silver edges give the cards a finished look. The format is larger than standard, 83 x 127 mm, so details are clearly visible. The cardstock has a matte finish, which shuffles well and does not show glare or fingerprints easily.

Each card carries the traditional tarot name at the bottom. The numbering follows the Rider-Waite system, so Strength is VIII and Justice is XI. The additional female cards are recognizable by their subtly different title.

How this deck works in practice

This is not a deck you read by fixed meanings. The images evoke associations. Which detail catches your eye? What does the figure on the card feel like? Those questions work better than looking up a standard meaning.

The 96-page guidebook gives a short description and interpretation for each card. They are clearly written but leave space. Catrin Welz-Stein does not dictate what a card must mean, she describes what she sees in it.

The five additional female cards make it possible to bring more balance to a reading. Traditional tarot holds much male authority in the court cards. Here you can choose: do you want the energy of a King, or does that of a Queen fit the question better?

Lay out the five pairs of court cards side by side and see which version speaks to you. Some readers always work with the female set, others switch per reading.

About Catrin Welz-Stein

Catrin Welz-Stein is a German artist who focuses on digital collage. She sources her material from old books, botanical drawings and forgotten portraits. Her work is recognizable by its layered quality and the quiet tension between elements.

She names Magritte and Frida Kahlo as influences. You see that reflected in the way she combines human figures with nature and animals, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Specifications

• Number of cards: 83 (78 standard tarot cards + 5 additional female court cards)
• Card dimensions: 83 x 127 mm
• Finish: matte with silver-gilded edges
• Guidebook: 96 pages, English
• Publisher: U.S. Games Systems Inc.
• ISBN: 9781646710097
• Artist: Catrin Welz-Stein
• Packaging: luxury box with silver foil

Questions we often get

Are the additional female cards meant to replace cards, or do you use all 83?
You choose. You can keep all 83 cards in the deck and use whichever card you draw. Or you remove the five male versions and work with 78 cards that hold more feminine energy. Both ways are valid.

Does this deck work for beginners?
Yes, if you are willing to work on feeling. The images are not literal, so you will listen to your intuition more often than to a fixed list of meanings. The guidebook helps with that, but does not lock everything down.