Theme decks are very much a part of the Tarot world. Within the genre of theme decks is a specific sub-genre that I really enjoy – that of Tarot decks based on literature. One example of this would be Diane Wilkes’ “Jane Austen Tarot”, another would be Robert M. Place’s just released “The Vampire Tarot”.

Very different decks, but both very high quality. Place is an internationally known visionary artist, author and illustrator. Conducts Tarot classes, workshops and symposiums, and has appeared on the Discovery Channel series “Strictly Supernatural”, as well as on the Learning Channel and A&E.

In “The Vampire Tarot”, Place brings together the world of Tarot and the world of vampire myth and legend. A point that he makes early in his companion book is that the mythology of the vampire addresses the same concerns about mortality and the nature of the soul that the Tarot addresses (The Tarot Major Arcana are traditionally seen as the “Fool’s Journey”, or sometimes as the “Hero’s Journey.)

The background for this deck rests heavily on Bram Stocker’s book “Dracula”, and on the people that surrounded Stoker at that time. In fact, the Court cards are all named after people and literary figures from this time period that were connected with Bram Stoker, such as Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu, Carmilla (the vampire at the center of Le Fanu’s novel of the same name), Tarot designer Pamela Colman Smith, Sir Henry Irving, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Ellen Terry and Lord Byron.

A deck such as this makes it very easy to apply the Tarot to everyday living, and yet to also see the higher metaphysical/spiritual applications. I don’t think that you will find anyone that is better versed in my and symbology/imagery that Robert Place.

If you wish to see more of his work, go to www.thealchemicalegg.com.