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The Hoodoo Tarot: 78-Card Deck and Book for Rootworkers
A divination deck and guidebook rooted in the American Hoodoo tradition
• 2021 Coalition of Visionary Resources Silver Award
• Includes 78 full-color Tarot cards that depict legendary rootworkers past and present as well as important Hoodoo archetypes and symbols
• Provides in-depth card meanings for each card in the Major Arcana and the four suits of the Minor Arcana, including the history of the rootworker or symbol featured, any associated magical plants, and guidance based on the card’s meaning
• Offers a history of Hoodoo and its complex heritage, including its roots in multiple African and Native American ethnic groups as well as its European influences
Between the 17th and 19th centuries, many Indigenous Americans and people of African descent intermarried and socialized more often than is acknowledged by mainstream history books and scholars. These interactions produced not only a multicultural people but also a body of knowledge that is known today as Hoodoo or Rootwork.
Celebrating the complex American Rootwork tradition, The Hoodoo Tarot integrates esoteric and botanical knowledge from Hoodoo with the divination system of the Tarot. Structured like a traditional Tarot deck, each of the 78 cards features full-color paintings by magical-realist artist Katelan Foisy and elegantly interprets the classical Tarot imagery through depictions of legendary rootworkers past and present as well as important Hoodoo symbolism.
In the accompanying guidebook, Tayannah Lee McQuillar provides a history of Hoodoo and its complex heritage, including its roots in multiple African and Indigenous American ethnic groups as well as its European influences. She explores the traditional forms of divination used by rootworkers, including cartomancy, explaining how pairing the Tarot with Hoodoo is a natural fit. For each card in the Major Arcana and the four suits of the Minor Arcana (sticks, baskets, needles, and knives), McQuillar provides an in-depth card meaning that draws on both Tarot and Hoodoo tradition. She shares the history of the rootworker or symbol featured, any associated magical plants, a related scriptural quote, and guidance and advice based on the card’s meaning. She also offers instructions on card spreads and shares sample card readings.
Offering a divination system rooted in the Indigenous and African experience in North America, The Hoodoo Tarot provides a hands-on way to honor and explore the magic of Hoodoo for personal growth and spiritual inspiration.
• 2021 Coalition of Visionary Resources Silver Award
• Includes 78 full-color Tarot cards that depict legendary rootworkers past and present as well as important Hoodoo archetypes and symbols
• Provides in-depth card meanings for each card in the Major Arcana and the four suits of the Minor Arcana, including the history of the rootworker or symbol featured, any associated magical plants, and guidance based on the card’s meaning
• Offers a history of Hoodoo and its complex heritage, including its roots in multiple African and Native American ethnic groups as well as its European influences
Between the 17th and 19th centuries, many Indigenous Americans and people of African descent intermarried and socialized more often than is acknowledged by mainstream history books and scholars. These interactions produced not only a multicultural people but also a body of knowledge that is known today as Hoodoo or Rootwork.
Celebrating the complex American Rootwork tradition, The Hoodoo Tarot integrates esoteric and botanical knowledge from Hoodoo with the divination system of the Tarot. Structured like a traditional Tarot deck, each of the 78 cards features full-color paintings by magical-realist artist Katelan Foisy and elegantly interprets the classical Tarot imagery through depictions of legendary rootworkers past and present as well as important Hoodoo symbolism.
In the accompanying guidebook, Tayannah Lee McQuillar provides a history of Hoodoo and its complex heritage, including its roots in multiple African and Indigenous American ethnic groups as well as its European influences. She explores the traditional forms of divination used by rootworkers, including cartomancy, explaining how pairing the Tarot with Hoodoo is a natural fit. For each card in the Major Arcana and the four suits of the Minor Arcana (sticks, baskets, needles, and knives), McQuillar provides an in-depth card meaning that draws on both Tarot and Hoodoo tradition. She shares the history of the rootworker or symbol featured, any associated magical plants, a related scriptural quote, and guidance and advice based on the card’s meaning. She also offers instructions on card spreads and shares sample card readings.
Offering a divination system rooted in the Indigenous and African experience in North America, The Hoodoo Tarot provides a hands-on way to honor and explore the magic of Hoodoo for personal growth and spiritual inspiration.
160 pages, Cards
Published February 18, 2020
7 people are currently reading
238 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 24, 2020
Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you. You went OFF!! This is nothing short of a masterpiece. What you've created is: both a reminder of our birthright & a tool to tap into it's power. ✊🏾🖤
This is a full course study. The booklet is large and packed with info presented in a concise and organized fashion.
This is not just our why and how, but our WHO, when, and where. I felt this in my bones. Truly i did. This is the deck i didn't know I've been waiting for! I'm a playing cards person, have been for about a year now along with my oracle deck. Never really had a significant interest in tarot until this deck.
I appreciate you so much for this: the time, the energy, the CLARIFICATION, the finest details, the JOURNEY through time and bloodlines.
On behalf of all descendants who do and don't yet know what's up, thank you 🖤.
I'm obsessed.
I'm elated.
I'm excited.
I'm even more inspired to be immersed into my studies/this practices journey. Xoxo
This is a full course study. The booklet is large and packed with info presented in a concise and organized fashion.
This is not just our why and how, but our WHO, when, and where. I felt this in my bones. Truly i did. This is the deck i didn't know I've been waiting for! I'm a playing cards person, have been for about a year now along with my oracle deck. Never really had a significant interest in tarot until this deck.
I appreciate you so much for this: the time, the energy, the CLARIFICATION, the finest details, the JOURNEY through time and bloodlines.
On behalf of all descendants who do and don't yet know what's up, thank you 🖤.
I'm obsessed.
I'm elated.
I'm excited.
I'm even more inspired to be immersed into my studies/this practices journey. Xoxo
August 31, 2020
This book is interesting and eye-opening. This may be due to my lineage coming through and my soul recognizing what it did so many lives ago. I absolutely love that this is entirely ancestral roots based and that you’re actually discovering in a very simple yet deep spiritual level. I also love that the major Arcana represents real people whose gifts fit the placement of the card and black people we in the U. S. A. SHOULD KNOW.
As a card reader, I have been researching my roots. I have always been pulled to work with herbs and roots along with my many decks. They never failed me or my customers and they never shall! I am proud of my strength knowing without doubt of its extreme mental powers. I’ve had this card deck and book for quite sometime already and every time I went to work with it, I was told or something occurred , letting me know it wasn’t time yet. Finally, my ancestors have shown they are ready for me. I absolutely LOVE how I feel my family so incredibly close through these cards. I know their energies will always be my guidance.
I highly suggest The Hoodoo Tarot if you’re aware of your lineage working with herb and root work, especially if you’re called to working with the fruits of our earth.
Blessed be! Ashé!
As a card reader, I have been researching my roots. I have always been pulled to work with herbs and roots along with my many decks. They never failed me or my customers and they never shall! I am proud of my strength knowing without doubt of its extreme mental powers. I’ve had this card deck and book for quite sometime already and every time I went to work with it, I was told or something occurred , letting me know it wasn’t time yet. Finally, my ancestors have shown they are ready for me. I absolutely LOVE how I feel my family so incredibly close through these cards. I know their energies will always be my guidance.
I highly suggest The Hoodoo Tarot if you’re aware of your lineage working with herb and root work, especially if you’re called to working with the fruits of our earth.
Blessed be! Ashé!
March 4, 2020
This review originally appeared on The Magical Buffet's website on 03/03/2020.
I don’t know where to begin with this review. I have received, and purchased, many tarot and oracle decks throughout the years, but I don’t think I have ever learned as much as I did from “The Hoodoo Tarot” by Tayannah Lee McQuillar.
McQuillar presents a new take on the traditional tarot, by infusing it with Hoodoo history and practices. She, with illustrator Katelan V. Foisy, present the deck as Elders, Family, and Community. The Elders represent the Major Arcana, the Family are the Court cards, and the Community is the Minor Arcana. The Tools, represented by 4 suits, like the Minor Arcana we’re familiar with, are Sticks, Baskets, Knives, and Coins.
For instance, one of my favorite cards in The Hanged Man. In “The Hoodoo Tarot” this card is represented by Gullah Jack. Info from his entry includes his Biblical reference of Proverbs 16:9, “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” His plant is hemp. More from the book:
"Gullah Jack has a noose around his neck, but his face is serene. He has a Kongo cosmogram as his third eye.
Gullah Jack (?-1822) was a Bakongo prisoner of war who was sold into slavery in Zanzibar. He was eventually sent to Charleston, South Carolina, and purchased by a man named Paul Pritchard. Gullah Jack had a reputation as a powerful rootworker with a particular talent for making protective amulets. This may have been one of the reasons Telemaque, a.k.a. Denmark Vesey, recruited him to plan a revolt consisting of only African-born men against the colonists. Gullah Jack instructed the rebels to eat a special diet of corn and peanuts the day of the attack and provided them with crab claws as a talisman to keep them safe. He also threatened to put the root on any other slaves who spoke of the plan. Unfortunately for the rebels, the plan was betrayed, and the revolt was suppressed. All of the plotters, including Gullah Jack, were sentenced to death, but not before Gullah Jack used mysterious hand gestures, presumably to curse all of their oppressors. Gullah Jack was hanged on July 2, 1822."
This level of information is provided for EVERY CARD. Think of how much you can learn from this deck! Think of how much I learned from this deck! I learned SO MUCH. Seriously, I may curl up and reread the book again!
“The Hoodoo Tarot” by Tayannah Lee McQuillar is the perfect deck for anyone looking for a unique tarot experience, or someone who wants to learn more about Hoodoo and its history.
I don’t know where to begin with this review. I have received, and purchased, many tarot and oracle decks throughout the years, but I don’t think I have ever learned as much as I did from “The Hoodoo Tarot” by Tayannah Lee McQuillar.
McQuillar presents a new take on the traditional tarot, by infusing it with Hoodoo history and practices. She, with illustrator Katelan V. Foisy, present the deck as Elders, Family, and Community. The Elders represent the Major Arcana, the Family are the Court cards, and the Community is the Minor Arcana. The Tools, represented by 4 suits, like the Minor Arcana we’re familiar with, are Sticks, Baskets, Knives, and Coins.
For instance, one of my favorite cards in The Hanged Man. In “The Hoodoo Tarot” this card is represented by Gullah Jack. Info from his entry includes his Biblical reference of Proverbs 16:9, “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” His plant is hemp. More from the book:
"Gullah Jack has a noose around his neck, but his face is serene. He has a Kongo cosmogram as his third eye.
Gullah Jack (?-1822) was a Bakongo prisoner of war who was sold into slavery in Zanzibar. He was eventually sent to Charleston, South Carolina, and purchased by a man named Paul Pritchard. Gullah Jack had a reputation as a powerful rootworker with a particular talent for making protective amulets. This may have been one of the reasons Telemaque, a.k.a. Denmark Vesey, recruited him to plan a revolt consisting of only African-born men against the colonists. Gullah Jack instructed the rebels to eat a special diet of corn and peanuts the day of the attack and provided them with crab claws as a talisman to keep them safe. He also threatened to put the root on any other slaves who spoke of the plan. Unfortunately for the rebels, the plan was betrayed, and the revolt was suppressed. All of the plotters, including Gullah Jack, were sentenced to death, but not before Gullah Jack used mysterious hand gestures, presumably to curse all of their oppressors. Gullah Jack was hanged on July 2, 1822."
This level of information is provided for EVERY CARD. Think of how much you can learn from this deck! Think of how much I learned from this deck! I learned SO MUCH. Seriously, I may curl up and reread the book again!
“The Hoodoo Tarot” by Tayannah Lee McQuillar is the perfect deck for anyone looking for a unique tarot experience, or someone who wants to learn more about Hoodoo and its history.
February 25, 2023
I bought the cards in 2020 but didn't have the guts to open them until 2023. The card deck was cut into two different sizes; The 'community' cards were cut smaller and the 'elder' and 'family' cards were cut slightly bigger making shuffling a little tricky and removing some element of surprise.
Having done some family tree sleuthing over Zoom with cousins during Covid lockdown I learned that my family settled in New York and New Jersey after they were freed in the West Indies. As far as we know, we don't have many or any roots in the south. So I viewed the book that the cards came with as a brief historical overview of key Black figures in the South. I also enjoyed learning new spreads and the added plant associations.
This book and the design of the cards doesn't shy away from the traumas of slavery, segregation, and community violence. This feeling of darkness and pain visually looms over the deck in a brown haze, as if the deck was found and salvaged from a muddy riverbank. If that's what the creator of this deck was going for they hit the nail on the head. However, if I were the art director on this project, for usability purposes I would drop the brown haze by 80% and up the contrast in just about all the card compositions by 50%. I would also not shy away from using color when necessary. I would do what I could to make sure the cards that are auspicious and hopeful feel positive so that the more ominous and foreboding cards feel more negative by contrast. Right now the brown wash mutes everything and makes even the happy cards feel cautionary. True, the cards all have their own positive and negative meanings but if everything is brown and sad then nothing is.
Having done some family tree sleuthing over Zoom with cousins during Covid lockdown I learned that my family settled in New York and New Jersey after they were freed in the West Indies. As far as we know, we don't have many or any roots in the south. So I viewed the book that the cards came with as a brief historical overview of key Black figures in the South. I also enjoyed learning new spreads and the added plant associations.
This book and the design of the cards doesn't shy away from the traumas of slavery, segregation, and community violence. This feeling of darkness and pain visually looms over the deck in a brown haze, as if the deck was found and salvaged from a muddy riverbank. If that's what the creator of this deck was going for they hit the nail on the head. However, if I were the art director on this project, for usability purposes I would drop the brown haze by 80% and up the contrast in just about all the card compositions by 50%. I would also not shy away from using color when necessary. I would do what I could to make sure the cards that are auspicious and hopeful feel positive so that the more ominous and foreboding cards feel more negative by contrast. Right now the brown wash mutes everything and makes even the happy cards feel cautionary. True, the cards all have their own positive and negative meanings but if everything is brown and sad then nothing is.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 8, 2021
Not my first deck but definitely MY FIRST DECK. This deck is everything I wanted. I had been searching for cards that related to me and that called me to tell my story and these are those cards. Tayannah McQuillar's book is thorough and well thought out. Katelan Foisy's artwork is reminiscent of the sepia photographs I use to pour over in my grandmother's photobooks. I love this deck.
November 10, 2022
The Hoodoo Tarot was a gift from my daughter a few Christmas' ago. I've taken my time to get to know the Deck. It has strong ancestral energy and I immediately knew these were my folks when I flipped the cards...my grandmother was a Rootworker and although I have a job in the matrix, I too work roots, read the Cards and am an astrologer. My practice includes a variety of divinatory tools and Decks, but this one is queried exclusively for familial and ancestral matters. Under the cross-quarter Taurus full moon eclipse on the morning of November 8th, 2022 following a meditation with Luna, I did the 'See 'Bout Your Folks' ancestor spread and its still working on me. In particular, the Mother of Baskets made herself known. I turn her up a lot, she jumps out of the shuffle and she surely let me know that she is the archetype of the ancestor that is most eager to work with me. The Mother of Baskets is inspired by Chloe Russell and after I dug into who Chloe is/was, I overstood why the Mother of Baskets has made herself known. She is the "teacher" for me of this Deck. I started reading with a deck of Playing Cards more than 15 years ago, they are the foundation of my card reading knowledge and are an excellent tool for developing intuitive understanding. Many Hoodoo practitioners employ the Playing Cards. The Hoodoo Deck gives them a face. I appreciate the research and the pure love, devotion and purpose put into the making of this Deck. It has a Spirit of its own. More on my experience with the 'See 'Bout Your Folks' ancestor spread...https://ginadiamond.com/see-bout-your...
June 29, 2022
A very interesting action of traditional tarot, applied through the filter of Hoodoo. Using imagery mostly featuring person of color, each card is reworked through the applied lens which is the books focus.
Some suggested spreads ate included which can illustrate any number of conditions one might be seeking answers for.
While I read tarot professionally, Hoodoo is not in my wheel house, and therefore I'd be uncomfortable using this deck in my Work, found it very useful as a personal use deck for some things I had been contemplating.
I originally received this deck several years ago, but due to other things going on in my life, it remained mostly untouched until several recent discussions brought it yo mind.
Some suggested spreads ate included which can illustrate any number of conditions one might be seeking answers for.
While I read tarot professionally, Hoodoo is not in my wheel house, and therefore I'd be uncomfortable using this deck in my Work, found it very useful as a personal use deck for some things I had been contemplating.
I originally received this deck several years ago, but due to other things going on in my life, it remained mostly untouched until several recent discussions brought it yo mind.
May 18, 2023
The deck is well done, but the star of the show is the guidebook. Each story of the Major Arcana cards is like a little history lesson. The stories of the Minor cards are just as compelling. I've never enjoyed reading a guidebook so much. Each card comes with a vivid story rich in culture. It's a great deck to add to your collection.
May 7, 2025
truly incredible. I've learned so much about hoodoo and the history of our people. it's a beautifully written guidebook and a wonderful introduction to hoodoo. if you're not sure where to start, grab this book(and the deck too)
May 12, 2021
I love this deck, and the book that comes with it, very informative. The cards are lovely, illustrations are great.
March 5, 2023
Full of history of our spiritual connections.
September 6, 2024
Exceptional history, background, and beautiful deck! If you live in the southeastern U.S. and are a magical or esoteric practitioner, I really think this is a must-have.
May 18, 2024
I've just begun working with this deck... my thoughts will come in a bit...
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews