Santa Muerte tarot
The Santa Muerte Tarot was created by award-winning Italian artist Fabio Listrani and published by Lo Scarabeo. Subtitled "Book of the Dead," the deck draws from the Mexican folk saint Santa Muerte and Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) traditions. Listrani is a Rome-based artist who has illustrated for Marvel, Titan Comics, Heavy Metal, and IDW Publishing. He is also the creator of the Night Sun Tarot, Goetia: Tarot in Darkness, and Notoria: Tarot in Light. The deck comes with Lo Scarabeo's standard five-language companion booklet (English, Spanish, French, Italian, German) and a mini edition is also available. Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab created a fragrance collaboration inspired by the deck.
Official Website →Art Style & Visual Character
The artwork features incredibly bold colors and superb digital illustration depicting Santa Muerte and her skeleton cohort acting out Rider-Waite-style tarot scenes. The art is ironically full of life despite featuring skeletal beings — Listrani's flair for anatomical figure drawing and inventiveness with different types of bones creates images of indescribable beauty and emotion. Some Major Arcana cards are rendered with humor (Strength and the Hanged Man), while others carry deep gravity. The Mexican folk art influence infuses the deck with rich cultural texture — vibrant reds, golds, blues, and greens against dark backgrounds.
Core Concept & Symbolism
The deck is loosely based on the Waite-Smith tarot structure, with skeletal beings rather than fleshy humans carrying out familiar tarot scenes. Every card feels thoughtfully designed rather than simply pasting a theme onto a standard tarot — the Santa Muerte concept genuinely transforms the meaning of each card. The deck works with the mysticism associated with the Day of the Dead and Santa Muerte devotion, exploring themes of death as transformation, the thin veil between worlds, and the celebration of life through the lens of mortality. Listrani's approach is what he calls "visual cultural nomadism" — diving into other cultures' folk and religious symbols and applying them to graphic art.
Reading Experience
The Queen's Sword review notes "answers lean towards directness, but with a very strong core of the possibility to transform, get through a situation." The Itinerant Librarian calls it a refreshing deck with something to look at on each card. Patchwork Soul's review praises the phenomenal artwork that never feels forced. However, the deck has received criticism because Listrani is not Mexican nor a follower of the Mexican and Pre-Columbian Catholic folk religion the deck represents — a cultural appropriation debate that divides the community. Supporters see it as beautiful artistic representation; critics view it as problematic. Despite this controversy, the deck has become a widely popular and well-regarded reading tool.
Best Used For
- Shadow work and transformation-focused readings
- Practitioners who work with death symbolism and ancestor veneration
- Fans of Day of the Dead and Santa Muerte aesthetics
- Experienced readers who appreciate Listrani's artistic vision
- Readings about endings, transitions, and rebirth
- Collectors of Fabio Listrani's acclaimed tarot art series
Not Ideal For
- Those who find cultural appropriation of Mexican folk religion problematic
- Beginners who may be put off by skeletal imagery throughout
- Readers seeking cheerful, lighthearted daily reading decks
Major Arcana (22 cards)
The 22 trump cards representing life's spiritual lessons and karmic influences
Minor Arcana (56 cards)
The 56 suit cards reflecting day-to-day events and practical influences
Wands
Fire element — passion, creativity, ambition, and spiritual growth
Cups
Water element — emotions, relationships, intuition, and inner feelings
Swords
Air element — intellect, conflict, truth, and mental clarity
Pentacles
Earth element — material world, finances, health, and practical matters
