Ancient, worn and cracked. 1800's are ripped from history. No detail was left untouched-- artwork on each card was delicately hand-crafted by Ellusionist's top graphic team. Even the seal on the deck looks like it was left in a gritty New York alley "for a spell". The cards are an illusion in themselves, because they may look very old, but they handle better than anything out there. You have to keep telling yourself, this is a new deck of cards.